Journal of Counseling Research

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Domestic violence against children, in addition to its humanities and human rights issue, is considered a major health problem that can make vulnerable and pose as a risk through its physical, mental, and social consequences for children, families and the society. The current study aimed to explore the life experience of children lived with domestic violence. Methods: The present study was of qualitative type, and followed a phenomenological approach. Data collection was carried out through using semi-structured interviews and focus groups. Data from the interviews were analyzed using Granhaym- Landman content analysis. Results: The children's life experience regarding domestic violence was categorized into three-stratum "experience of physical and psychological abuse", "using of self-care strategies", and "social presence as a challenge". Conclusions: The results of this study emphasize the importance of preventive measures and more attention from the authorities and those in charge of protecting children. In this regard, effective measures can be taken through raising the awareness of different stratum of society, educating to build a culture and upbringing free from violence, and developing and improving protection laws for children, and identifying vulnerable families and providing rehabilitation services for victims of child abuse.

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Purpose: The present study was done with an aim to analyze the perceptions and lived experience of couples about the causes of emotional separation. Methods: The present study was of qualitative type, and followed a phenomenological approach. The data, which have been gathered through conducting twenty in-depth and semi-structured interviews with male and female who were either currently or formerly married in two cities of Qom and Tehran, have been analyzed using the theoretical coding.. Based on their married life experience, the individuals in this study described and stated the causes of the development and aggravation of their emotional separation, as well as the ways to prevent and improve such separations. Results: The in-depth analysis of the lived experiences of the interviewees led into the identification of ten minor causes and eventually into the categorization of these minor causes into four larger categories. According to the findings, the major causes of the phenomenon of  divorce are categorized into: the psychological and moral challenges, the emotional and sexual challenges, the financial challenges, and challenges related to the information technology. Conclusion: The Results of this research indicate the diversity and the multiplicity of the underlying causes of emotional separation, and suggest that such a phenomenon is affected by a variety of intertwining causes. Furthermore, these results put emphasis on the necessity for the improvement of the individual skills, such as emotional intelligence (EI), effective communication, and problem-solving as the ultimate remedies to this situation.

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Aim: The purpose of this study was to extract the lived experiences of working couples from marital conflicts. Methods: This study was conducted with a qualitative approach using interpretive phenomenology. In this study, researchers interviewed 12 working couples with marital conflicts using purposeful sampling. Interviews were analyzed using interpretive phenomenology. Findings: Analyzing the data from the interviews led to the identification of the 14 main themes: financial conflict, inappropriate interactions in social media, lack of participation in house chores, ineffective communication, inability in reciprocal empathy and expression,  lack of time management,  conflict of roles and responsibilities, cognition vulnerability, adherence to gender stereotypes, inability to manage tasks at job and work environment, work-family conflict, power struggles, ultra-personal destructive factors and belief and ethical problems, 55 primary and 12 secondary themes in the lived experiences of working couples from marital conflicts. Conclusion: A dual-career family is a place where couples are more likely to enter into marital conflicts if they do not realize fairness in various areas of family and work. The results of the present study showed that the families of career couples may be a high-risk group in terms of conflict, and this factor indicates the need for a negotiating role in the relationship between this type of couple. This highlights the need for special couple therapy for these couples. The results of the present study also showed that ineffective communication, cognitive vulnerability, work-family interaction, financial conflict and lack of participation in home affairs, were the most common causes of marital conflict; so it is recommended that preventive and educational programs for couples include the abovementioned factors.

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Aim: The aim of this study was to investigate young people's metaphors of "marriage" based on the cognitive metaphorical theory of Lakoff and Johnson. Methods: In line with the goal of this research, and in order to obtain the lived experiences of individuals, phenomenological methodology in qualitative study was used. The study population was married youth who volunteered to be interviewed in this field and based on the principle of theoretical sampling and data saturation, 13 people were interviewed. Results: This study showed how the Iranian youth understand the concept of marriage in such a way that the nature of marriage is a purposeful journey that is created by spouses. The existence of origin, destination, purposefulness, human corridor and movement, and finally the necessities of a healthy and successful transition to this destination, is seen positively to explain "way" as my nickname "marriage". Conclusion: Findings indicate that in this regard, the approach of educational counseling should be resorted to, in addition to the purpose and destination of the couple in marriage, their goals in life in terms of value and semantic changes in society and discourses involving spouses around the concept of marriage was examined.

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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.

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Aim: This study aimed to investigate the experience of spouse selection in children of divorce. Methods: The present study was a qualitative phenomenological type. The present study's statistical population included 6 women and 4 men who wanted to divorce and had experienced the divorce of their parents in Kermanshah in 2022. The participants were selected by the available sampling method and the sampling continued until data saturation. The data were first recorded and coded to analyze the data, and then they were analyzed using the thematic analysis method. Findings: The results of the research included 6 main themes and 19 sub-themes of the participants' experiences. The sub-themes included negative social attitude, problems of not being distinguished from the family, psychological problems, communication problems with the spouse and the spouse's family, feeling valuable as a person different from the parents, and adapting and building a life different from the parents. Conclusion: The results of the research showed that the children of divorce have negative experiences during the formation of life and marriage, which can lead to wrong choices or incompatibility and mental health problems in them. On the other hand, they also have positive experiences that make them learn from their parent's mistakes and seek education and counseling services to improve their marital life satisfaction and lead a better life than their parents.

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Aim: The research aimed to study the psychological consequences of child marriage among girls through a phenomenological approach and semi-structured interviews. Methods:  Twenty women from Gilan, Khoozestan, Sistan and Baloochistan, Khorasan and Yazd province who experienced child marriage and their current ages were less than 50 years old were selected through purposive sampling. Interviews and observations were conducted by traveling to each province. Colaizzi method was used in order to analysis data. Results: Results were included of 5 main themes and 15 sub themes in psychological consequences. Main themes are crashed ego, psychic traumas, negative emotions, immaturity and personal maturity. Conclusion: The results showed that negative psychological consequences of child marriage are much more than their positive ones.


 

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 Aim: The present study aimed to explore and identify marital virtues among married men. Method: A qualitative approach using interpretative phenomenological methodology was employed to achieve the research goal. The study participants were married men and women residing in the Isfahan, whose length of marriage ranged from 5 to 20 years in 2024. Participants were selected through purposive sampling from individuals accessible to the researcher, resulting in a sample of 20 participants (10 men and 10 women). Data were collected through semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Colaizzi’s method. Finding: The findings were ultimately organized into 47 subcategories, 8 main categories, and 2 themes. The extracted main categories included caregiving, relational wisdom, steadfast loyalty and commitment, respect and reverence, intelligent adjustment, gentleness and emotional stability, marital prudence, and spirituality-based tranquility. Conclusion: The results indicate the existence of two broad categories of marital virtues among married men. Inner-regulatory virtues pertain to intrapersonal processes that foster psychological and moral readiness for healthy engagement with the challenges of married life. In contrast, relationship-responsive virtues emerge within direct interaction with one’s spouse and relate to how individuals respond to the needs, expectations, and demands of the marital relationship. The formation of a healthy and high-quality marital relationship requires the simultaneous presence and interaction of these two moral dimensions. It is therefore suggested that enhancing marital virtues in men may provide a foundation for improving the quality of marital relationships among married individuals.

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Aim: Previous research has primarily examined the experience of “we-ness” in marital relationships through linguistic indicators or cognitive constructs, paying less attention to how this experience emerges and evolves in couples’ everyday lives. The present study aimed to explore the lived experience of “we-ness” and to understand how it develops, is maintained, changes, and becomes consolidated within marital relationships. Methods: This study employed an Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis (IPA) approach. Participants consisted of eight couples in relatively intimate and stable marital relationships who were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected through in-depth semi-structured interviews and analyzed using interpretative phenomenological analysis. Findings: The findings indicated that we-ness in marital relationships is not a fixed state but rather a dynamic and evolving process. Five major themes emerged from the analysis: the formation of we-ness, relationship regulation based on we-ness, relational awareness of the couple’s shared identity, redefining we-ness during crises and challenging relational situations, and the consolidation of we-ness. The findings suggest that couples gradually develop a shared identity, negotiate a balance between individuality and togetherness, become more aware of relational patterns, redefine their relationship in the face of crises, and ultimately achieve a more stable experience of we-ness. Conclusion: The results suggest that we-ness can be understood as an ongoing process involving the formation, regulation, reflection, reconstruction, and consolidation of a shared relational identity. Accordingly, attention to the quality of couples’ experience of we-ness may help therapists move beyond a sole focus on conflict resolution and instead strengthen shared identity, enhance relational awareness, and support the reconstruction of couple bonds during difficult periods of life. By introducing the concept of processual we-ness, the present study provides a framework for understanding the dynamic nature of shared identity in marital relationships.

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Objective: War conditions may affect young children's experiences across emotional, cognitive, and behavioral domains. Despite the importance of this issue, direct research on parents'experiences of emotional and behavioral changes in children under six years of age during wartime remains limited. The present study aimed to understand parents' lived experiences of the emotional and behavioral states of children under six years of age in the context of war-related tension and crisis and to identify the dimensions of this experience.
Method: This study was conducted using a descriptive phenomenological approach. Participants were 16 parents of children under six years of age who had experienced the war-related crisis and were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected through in-depth, semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Colaizzi's seven-step phenomenological analysis method. 
Results: Analysis of parents' lived experiences indicated that young children's experiences of war-related tension and crisis were multidimensional and were reflected in emotional, cognitive, and behavioral domains. The core theme was identified as “Consequences and the Process of Adaptation to War Crisis in Children.” This core theme comprised seven main themes: “the context in which the child's experience is formed,” “emotional arousal and insecurity,” “the child's efforts to seek security,” “the reflection of war in children's cognition and meaning-making,” “the reflection of war in children's behavior and play,” “the influence of parents' responses on the child's experience,”and “adaptation and return to normalcy.” Overall, one core theme, seven main themes, and 21 subthemes were identified. 
Conclusion: The findings indicate that young children's experience of war crisis is a multidimensional process that begins with their exposure to the consequences of war and is manifested through fear and worry, sensitivity to sounds, feelings of danger and threat, increased need for parental presence, questions about war and death, changes in sleep and daily activities, and changes in play.
 

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Abstract T   his study explores the cycle of hope and despair by examining the fluctuating experiences of suicidal ideation among university students over the course of an academic semester during escalating tensions between Iran and the United States. The study aimed to understand the dynamic and context-dependent nature of suicidal thoughts in relation to personal pressures, the academic structure, and broader social crises. Using a descriptive phenomenological design based on Colaizzi's seven-step method, data from in-depth, semi-structured interviews with eleven students were analyzed. Seven major themes emerged: the collapse of the sense of security, the accumulation of psychological stress, the oscillating cycle of hope and despair, suicidal ideation as a language of helplessness, political crisis as a qualitative amplifier of distress, protective factors, and existential rethinking. The findings indicate that suicidal ideation is not a static phenomenon but a cyclical experience profoundly shaped by the interaction between personal pressures and broader threats. These findings highlight the need to reconsider university screening systems by moving beyond cross-sectional assessments toward longitudinal, context-sensitive, and multilevel approaches. Clinical interventions should extend beyond symptom-focused assessment to understand the internal logic of entrapment, monitor fluctuations in suicide risk over time, and facilitate  

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Background: Repeated failures in assisted reproductive treatments, particularly in vitro fertilization (IVF), are not merely medical experiences but involve profound psychological, social, and identity-related consequences for women. Despite technological advances in infertility treatment, understanding the lived experience of women facing repeated cycles of failure requires qualitative investigation. This study aimed to explore the experience of “living in the cycle of hope and despair” among women with a history of multiple unsuccessful IVF treatments.Methods: This qualitative study was conducted using a descriptive phenomenological approach. The sample consisted of 12 women who had undergone at least three unsuccessful IVF cycles and were selected through purposive sampling. Data were collected via semi-structured interviews and analyzed using Colaizzi’s seven-step method. MAXQDA version 20 software was employed for data management and organization.Findings: Data analysis revealed six main themes: “the cycle of hope–despair throughout treatment,” “disintegration and redefinition of maternal identity,” “experiencing time suspended in expectancy,” “socio-cultural pressures surrounding motherhood,” “emotional loneliness and complexities in marital relationships,” and “adaptation and meaning reconstruction.” Repeated IVF failures evoke a multidimensional experience of grief, identity crisis, and reconsideration of motherhood’s meaning and life’s future. Women cope with these challenges through diverse strategies such as redefining hope, relying on supportive resources, and reconstructing life meaning.Conclusion: The experience of repeated IVF failures transcends a mere medical event, representing a complex process involving confrontation with loss, social pressures, and identity reconstruction. The findings emphasize the necessity for integrating psychological and social support within infertility treatment services and designing interventions based on meaning and resilience for women undergoing treatment.  

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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.