Mr Rozhan Ghafori, Dr Omid Isanejad,
Volume 21, Issue 84 (12-2022)
Abstract
Aim: Blindness can drastically change the life of the person, and can create some problems in psychological and social adaptation. The purpose of the present study was to examine the love experience and the criteria for choosing a spouse among blind female students. The method used in this study was interpretative phenomenological analysis. Methods: This research uses deep, exhaustive, and semi-structured interviews to assess 18 students. All interviews were recorded digitally, and were transcribed. The data were analyzed using van Manen’s method. Findings: Six primary themes were emerged from the nature of participants’ lived experience, including ‘romantic assumptions and believes’, ‘romantic behaviors’, ‘the impact of love-making on life’, ‘attractive factor’ in the perception of love, and ‘intrapersonal criteria’, ‘interpersonal criteria’ in spouse selection. Conclusion: Sign and body language’ factor was among the most important communicative ways through which a blind girl makes a romantic relationship. ‘Commitment and fidelity’ were the most important criteria for spouse selection, and ‘health and beauty’ were the most important intrapersonal criteria.
Dr. Marziyeh Madanifar, Dr. Mitra Moradi,
Volume 25, Issue 99 (10-2026)
Abstract
Aim: This study aimed to explore and interpret the lived experiences of mothers residing in post-war regions regarding their participation in group psychoeducational programs, and to delineate the impact of this experience on their perception of war-related suffering. Method: Employing an interpretive phenomenological approach, this qualitative study gathered data through in-depth, semi-structured interviews with 12 mothers who participated in a structured post-war psychoeducational program. The interview transcripts were analyzed using thematic analysis. Finding: Data analysis yielded four organizing themes illustrating a dynamic transformative process from “passive suffering” to “active resilience”: (1) Ontological redefinition of suffering: transforming threat into opportunity (including sub-themes: suffering as a teacher, suffering as a context for transcendence, and conscious acceptance); (2) Expansion of resilient agency: activating multilayered resources (including: active emotion regulation, resource compartmentalization, and restoration of agency through narrative); (3) Resilience networking: the catalytic role of the group (including: the group as a mirror, and internalizing the voices of others); and (4) Transformative outcomes: the emergence of the resilient self (including: transition from fear to courage, paradigmatic integration of suffering and growth, and relational agency and empathy). Findings indicated that the psychoeducational program served as a platform for rewriting the narrative of suffering, strengthening resilient metacognition, and restoring agency through supportive relationships. Conclusion: The mothers’ experiences suggest that group psychoeducational interventions in post-war contexts can function as a conduit for post-traumatic growth and the reconstruction of maternal identity, extending far beyond simple symptom reduction. By facilitating the transition from passive victimhood to active agency, these interventions enable mothers to derive new meaning from their suffering, thereby experiencing resilience not as a static individual trait, but as a dynamic, relational, and meaning-making process embedded within the family and community fabric.
