The Effects of a REBT-Based Group Education Program on Irratio nal Beliefs of Early Childhood Teachers

This study examined the effects of a group education program based on Rational Emotive Behavior Therapy (REBT) on the irrational beliefs of early childhood teache rs. A total of 48 teachers working in private kindergartens were assigned to an expe rimental group, a comparison group, and a control group. A pretest–posttest–follow -up experimental-control group design was employed. The experimental group partici pated in an REBT-based group education program, while the comparison group recei ved a general character education program with the same number of sessions and d uration. No intervention was provided to the control group. Irrational beliefs were me asured using a self-report scale, and the data were analyzed through repeated-measu res analysis of variance (ANOVA). The results showed that the experimental group demonstrated a significant decrease in irrational beliefs at both posttest and follow-u p compared to the comparison and control groups, and the effects were maintained o ver time. In contrast, no significant changes were observed in the comparison or con trol groups. These findings suggest that reducing irrational beliefs among early child hood teachers requires cognitive interventions that directly identify and dispute irrati onal beliefs, rather than general value- or attitude-oriented education. This study pro vides empirical evidence supporting the practical applicability of REBT-based group programs for early childhood teachers.