Sandplay-Act. Older: Structured Sandplay Activity for Older Individuals

Condition(s) studied

Investigational drug(s) / intervention(s)

Sandplay-Act. Older: Structured Sandplay Activity for Older Individuals: Sandplay-Act Older (Structured Sandplay Activity for Older Individuals) is a structured sandplay activity developed to support older individuals in expressing their emotions, thoughts, and life experiences symbolically. The intervention consists of structured sessions where participants create scenes in a sand tray using miniature figures and make sense of their life experiences through these scenes. The program will be conducted twice a week for a total of four sessions. Each session will last approximately 60 minutes.

Control: Participants in the control group will not participate in structured sand play activities during the study period. Participants will continue with the institution's routine care and social activities; however, no psychosocial interventions will be applied within the scope of the study.

Study summary

This research was planned to determine the effect of structured sandplay activities on positive and negative affect and levels of meaning in life in elderly individuals. The research will be conducted as a single-blind, randomized controlled trial with a pre-test, post-test design at the Gül Kokulu Çınarlar Vefa Konağı of the Isparta Municipality Health Affairs Directorate between July 2026 and July 2027. Prior to the research, ethical committee approval and institutional permission for implementation will be obtained. The research population consists of 400 individuals registered with the institution. The sample will consist of 60 individuals (30 in the intervention group and 30 in the control group) who meet the inclusion criteria, are selected using block randomization, and provide informed consent. The control group will receive no intervention; a pre-test will be administered on the first day, and a post-test will be administered on the day the intervention for the experimental group ends. The intervention group will participate in sandplay activities twice a week for a total of four sessions; a pre-test will be administered on the first day, and a post-test will be administered in the last session. Data collection is planned for the period between July 2026 and July 2027 using the Personal Information Form (PIF), the Positive-Negative Affect Scale (PANAS), and the Meaning in Life Scale (MLS). Data will be analyzed using the SPSS (Statistical Program for Social Sciences) statistical analysis package, and statistical significance will be accepted at p \< 0.05.

Eligibility

Primary outcome measure(s)

• Positive-Negative Emotion Scale (PANAS) — At baseline and immediately after completion of the fourth intervention session.
  In this study, this scale was used to determine positive and negative emotions. The scale was created by Watson et al. (1988) and adapted into Turkish by Gençöz (2000). This scale, which has a total of 20 items and no reverse items, has 10 items that determine positive emotions and 10 items that determine negative emotions. In the Turkish form of the scale, it is a 5-point Likert type and is rated between "very little or none (1) and very much (5)". In the original form of the scale, the Cronbach's alpha reliability coefficient was reported as 0.88 and 0.85 for positive and negative emotions, respectively. Gençöz (2000), on the other hand, calculated the Cronbach's alpha values as 0.83 and 0.86 for positive and negative emotions in his research. In the study, Cronbach's alpha value was calculated as 0.81 for positive emotion and 0.79 for negative emotion.
• Meaning in Life Scale (MLS) — At baseline and immediately after completion of the fourth intervention session.
  The level of meaning in life of adult individuals was measured using the Meaning in Life Scale (MLS), developed by Steger et al. (2006) and adapted into Turkish by Demirbaş (2010). The MLS consists of 10 items, comprising two sub-dimensions: the presence of meaning in life and the search for meaning in life. Participants rate the appropriateness of each item on a seven-point Likert scale ranging from definitely not true (1) to definitely true (7). Scores on the scale range from 10 to 70, with higher scores indicating a higher level of meaning in life. Demirbaş (2010) reported the internal consistency of the entire MLS as .86 in a sample of university students. The Cronbach alpha internal consistency reliability coefficient calculated in this study was .75, indicating an acceptable level of reliability (Yockey, 2011). An example item from the scale is, "I am aware of the meaning of my life."

Trial sites (1)

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