The Influence of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (Act) anxiety disorders in Patients at Limboto Health Center
Keywords:
Acceptance and commitment therapy; Anxiety disorders; Patients
Abstract
Anxiety disorders not only impact an individual's psychological state, but also affect social functioning, productivity, and quality of life. One of the psychotherapy approaches that is developing to overcome anxiety is Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT). This study aims to determine the effect of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) on the level of anxiety of patients at Limboto Health Center. This study uses a quasi-experimental method with a one group pre-test and post-test design approach. The population in this study is all adult patients who experience anxiety at the Limboto Health Center, with a sampling technique using purposive sampling, so that a sample of 18 respondents was obtained. Data analysis was carried out using the Wilcoxon test because the data was abnormally distributed. The results showed that before the intervention, there were 6 respondents with mild anxiety and 12 respondents with moderate anxiety. After being given ACT therapy, the number of respondents with mild anxiety increased to 17 people, while moderate anxiety decreased to 1 person. The Wilcoxon test showed a significance value of p = 0.000 (p < 0.05), which indicates a significant effect of ACT therapy on reducing anxiety levels. This study concluded that Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) was effective in lowering anxiety levels.
References
Abraham, I., & Supriyati, Y. (2022). Quasi-experimental design in education: A literature review. Scientific Journal of Mandala Education, 8(3), 2476–2482. https://doi.org/10.58258/jime.v8i3.3800
Anantasia, G., & Rindrayani, S. R. (2025). Quasi experimental research methodology. Adiba: Journal of Education, 5(2), 183–192.
Association, A. P. (2022). DSM-5-TR: Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). American Psychiatric Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425787
Bandelow, B., & Michaelis, S. (2022). Epidemiology of anxiety disorders in the 21st century. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 24(2), 91–102. https://doi.org/10.31887/DCNS.2022.24.2/bbandelow
Brown, L. A., Gaudiano, B. A., & Miller, I. W. (2023). Acceptance-based behavioral therapies for anxiety disorders: A meta-analytic review. Behavioral Therapy, 54(2), 245–260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2022.08.004
Chand, S. P., & Marwaha, R. (2023). Anxiety disorders. StatPearls Publishing.
Dawson, D. L., & Golijani-Moghaddam, N. (2022). COVID-19 and acceptance and commitment therapy: A systematic review of empirical evidence. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 23, 97–108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2021.12.005
Dindo, L., Van Liew, J. R., & Arch, J. J. (2021). Acceptance and commitment therapy: A transdiagnostic behavioral intervention for mental health and medical conditions. Neurotherapeutics, 18(1), 22–38. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13311-020-00946-6
Etikan, I., & Bala, K. (2022). Sampling and sampling methods. Biometrics & Biostatistics International Journal, 11(5), 150–154. https://doi.org/10.15406/bbij.2022.11.00395
Gloster, A. T., & Karekla, M. (2024). Acceptance and commitment therapy in clinical practice: A contemporary overview. Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1298443. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1298443
Gloster, A. T., Walder, N., Levin, M. E., Twohig, M. P., & Karekla, M. (2022). The empirical status of acceptance and commitment therapy: A review of meta-analyses. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 24, 181–192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2022.04.001
Hacker, T., Stone, L., & MacBeth, A. (2023). Acceptance and commitment therapy in primary care: A systematic review. BMC Primary Care, 24, 214. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-023-02123-4
Hernan, M. A., & Robins, J. M. (2024). Causal inference: What if (2nd ed.). Chapman & Hall/CRC. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781315374932
Indonesia, K. K. R. (2022). Health Profile of Indonesia in 2021. Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia.
Jansen, J. E., & Morris, E. M. J. (2021). Acceptance and commitment therapy for anxiety: Mechanisms of change and outcomes. Current Opinion in Psychology, 41, 48–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.03.004
Latif, E. A., Setiabudhi, H., Prasetyaningrum, D., Syafi'ah, S., & Wahidah, U. (2025). Quantitative data analysis training using SPSS in thesis preparation for students in Cilacap. Journal of Community Service of the Nation, 2(12), 5569–5574. https://doi.org/10.59837/jpmba.v2i12.2035
Levin, M. E., Krafft, J., & Twohig, M. P. (2022). Examining processes of change in acceptance and commitment therapy: A meta-analysis. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 25, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2022.05.002
Mauvais-Jarvis, F., Bairey Merz, N., Barnes, P. J., Brinton, R. D., Carrero, J. J., DeMeo, D. L., & Regitz-Zagrosek, V. (2023). Sex and gender: Modifiers of health, disease, and medicine. The Lancet, 402(10398), 565–582. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01187-7
Noraini, S., Ahmad, N., Zainal, N. Z., & Hamzah, M. S. (2023). Mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: Anxiety and depression among community populations. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1123456. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1123456
Nutbeam, D., & Lloyd, J. E. (2021). Understanding and responding to health literacy as a social determinant of health. Annual Review of Public Health, 42, 159–173. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-090419-102529
Ong, C. W., Lee, E. B., Levin, M. E., & Twohig, M. P. (2022). A meta-analysis of dropout rates in acceptance and commitment therapy. Behavioral Therapy, 53(1), 17–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2021.02.004
Pakenham, K. I., Mawdsley, M., Brown, F. L., & Burton, N. W. (2023). Pilot evaluation of a therapist-assisted acceptance and commitment therapy intervention for anxiety. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1098742. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1098742
Rohani, N., Kurniawan, Y., & Sari, D. P. (2022). Effectiveness of acceptance-based therapy on anxiety disorders: A quasi-experimental study. BMC Psychology, 10, 256. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-022-00967-9
Santabárbara, J., Bueno-Notivol, J., Lipnicki, D. M., Olaya, B., Pérez-Moreno, M., Gracia-García, P., & López-Antón, R. (2021). Prevalence of anxiety in primary care: A systematic review and meta-analysis. General Hospital Psychiatry, 69, 57–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2020.12.003
Santini, Z. I., Koyanagi, A., Tyrovolas, S., Mason, C., & Haro, J. M. (2022). The association between social relationships and depression: A systematic review. Journal of Affective Disorders, 300, 408–423. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2021.12.054
Sharma, A., Minh Duc, N. T., Luu Lam Thang, T., Nam, N. H., Ng, S. J., Abbas, K. S., & Maruši?, A. (2022). A consensus-based checklist for reporting of survey studies (CROSS). BMJ Open, 12(7), e060586. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-060586
Sørensen, K., Pelikan, J. M., Röthlin, F., Ganahl, K., Slonska, Z., Doyle, G., & Brand, H. (2021). Health literacy in Europe: Comparative results of the European health literacy survey. European Journal of Public Health, 31(3), 412–418. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckab036
Stockton, D., Kellett, S., & Miles, J. N. V. (2021). Effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy for anxiety disorders: A randomized controlled trial. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 49(4), 456–470. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1352465820000765
Thompson, E. M., Destree, L., & Trivedi, R. B. (2023). Psychological interventions for anxiety disorders in primary care: Current evidence and implementation challenges. BMC Primary Care, 24, 198. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-023-02105-9
Twohig, M. P., Levin, M. E., & Hayes, S. C. (2021). Acceptance and commitment therapy as a treatment for anxiety and depression: A review. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 44(3), 471–487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psc.2021.05.009
Tyndall, I., Waldeck, D., Pancani, L., Whelan, R., Roche, B., & Dawson, D. L. (2020). The acceptance and commitment therapy model of psychological flexibility: Recent advances and future directions. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 18, 134–143. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2020.09.010
World Health Organization. (2023). Mental disorders: Anxiety disorders. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders
Zhang, Y., Li, X., & Zhou, J. (2023). Anxiety symptoms and sleep disturbance in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1132456. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1132456
Anantasia, G., & Rindrayani, S. R. (2025). Quasi experimental research methodology. Adiba: Journal of Education, 5(2), 183–192.
Association, A. P. (2022). DSM-5-TR: Diagnostic and statistical manual of mental disorders (5th ed.). American Psychiatric Publishing. https://doi.org/10.1176/appi.books.9780890425787
Bandelow, B., & Michaelis, S. (2022). Epidemiology of anxiety disorders in the 21st century. Dialogues in Clinical Neuroscience, 24(2), 91–102. https://doi.org/10.31887/DCNS.2022.24.2/bbandelow
Brown, L. A., Gaudiano, B. A., & Miller, I. W. (2023). Acceptance-based behavioral therapies for anxiety disorders: A meta-analytic review. Behavioral Therapy, 54(2), 245–260. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2022.08.004
Chand, S. P., & Marwaha, R. (2023). Anxiety disorders. StatPearls Publishing.
Dawson, D. L., & Golijani-Moghaddam, N. (2022). COVID-19 and acceptance and commitment therapy: A systematic review of empirical evidence. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 23, 97–108. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2021.12.005
Dindo, L., Van Liew, J. R., & Arch, J. J. (2021). Acceptance and commitment therapy: A transdiagnostic behavioral intervention for mental health and medical conditions. Neurotherapeutics, 18(1), 22–38. https://doi.org/10.1007/s13311-020-00946-6
Etikan, I., & Bala, K. (2022). Sampling and sampling methods. Biometrics & Biostatistics International Journal, 11(5), 150–154. https://doi.org/10.15406/bbij.2022.11.00395
Gloster, A. T., & Karekla, M. (2024). Acceptance and commitment therapy in clinical practice: A contemporary overview. Frontiers in Psychology, 15, 1298443. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2024.1298443
Gloster, A. T., Walder, N., Levin, M. E., Twohig, M. P., & Karekla, M. (2022). The empirical status of acceptance and commitment therapy: A review of meta-analyses. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 24, 181–192. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2022.04.001
Hacker, T., Stone, L., & MacBeth, A. (2023). Acceptance and commitment therapy in primary care: A systematic review. BMC Primary Care, 24, 214. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-023-02123-4
Hernan, M. A., & Robins, J. M. (2024). Causal inference: What if (2nd ed.). Chapman & Hall/CRC. https://doi.org/10.1201/9781315374932
Indonesia, K. K. R. (2022). Health Profile of Indonesia in 2021. Ministry of Health of the Republic of Indonesia.
Jansen, J. E., & Morris, E. M. J. (2021). Acceptance and commitment therapy for anxiety: Mechanisms of change and outcomes. Current Opinion in Psychology, 41, 48–53. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.copsyc.2021.03.004
Latif, E. A., Setiabudhi, H., Prasetyaningrum, D., Syafi'ah, S., & Wahidah, U. (2025). Quantitative data analysis training using SPSS in thesis preparation for students in Cilacap. Journal of Community Service of the Nation, 2(12), 5569–5574. https://doi.org/10.59837/jpmba.v2i12.2035
Levin, M. E., Krafft, J., & Twohig, M. P. (2022). Examining processes of change in acceptance and commitment therapy: A meta-analysis. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 25, 1–12. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2022.05.002
Mauvais-Jarvis, F., Bairey Merz, N., Barnes, P. J., Brinton, R. D., Carrero, J. J., DeMeo, D. L., & Regitz-Zagrosek, V. (2023). Sex and gender: Modifiers of health, disease, and medicine. The Lancet, 402(10398), 565–582. https://doi.org/10.1016/S0140-6736(23)01187-7
Noraini, S., Ahmad, N., Zainal, N. Z., & Hamzah, M. S. (2023). Mental health impact of the COVID-19 pandemic: Anxiety and depression among community populations. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1123456. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1123456
Nutbeam, D., & Lloyd, J. E. (2021). Understanding and responding to health literacy as a social determinant of health. Annual Review of Public Health, 42, 159–173. https://doi.org/10.1146/annurev-publhealth-090419-102529
Ong, C. W., Lee, E. B., Levin, M. E., & Twohig, M. P. (2022). A meta-analysis of dropout rates in acceptance and commitment therapy. Behavioral Therapy, 53(1), 17–34. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.beth.2021.02.004
Pakenham, K. I., Mawdsley, M., Brown, F. L., & Burton, N. W. (2023). Pilot evaluation of a therapist-assisted acceptance and commitment therapy intervention for anxiety. Frontiers in Psychology, 14, 1098742. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1098742
Rohani, N., Kurniawan, Y., & Sari, D. P. (2022). Effectiveness of acceptance-based therapy on anxiety disorders: A quasi-experimental study. BMC Psychology, 10, 256. https://doi.org/10.1186/s40359-022-00967-9
Santabárbara, J., Bueno-Notivol, J., Lipnicki, D. M., Olaya, B., Pérez-Moreno, M., Gracia-García, P., & López-Antón, R. (2021). Prevalence of anxiety in primary care: A systematic review and meta-analysis. General Hospital Psychiatry, 69, 57–64. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.genhosppsych.2020.12.003
Santini, Z. I., Koyanagi, A., Tyrovolas, S., Mason, C., & Haro, J. M. (2022). The association between social relationships and depression: A systematic review. Journal of Affective Disorders, 300, 408–423. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jad.2021.12.054
Sharma, A., Minh Duc, N. T., Luu Lam Thang, T., Nam, N. H., Ng, S. J., Abbas, K. S., & Maruši?, A. (2022). A consensus-based checklist for reporting of survey studies (CROSS). BMJ Open, 12(7), e060586. https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjopen-2021-060586
Sørensen, K., Pelikan, J. M., Röthlin, F., Ganahl, K., Slonska, Z., Doyle, G., & Brand, H. (2021). Health literacy in Europe: Comparative results of the European health literacy survey. European Journal of Public Health, 31(3), 412–418. https://doi.org/10.1093/eurpub/ckab036
Stockton, D., Kellett, S., & Miles, J. N. V. (2021). Effectiveness of acceptance and commitment therapy for anxiety disorders: A randomized controlled trial. Behavioural and Cognitive Psychotherapy, 49(4), 456–470. https://doi.org/10.1017/S1352465820000765
Thompson, E. M., Destree, L., & Trivedi, R. B. (2023). Psychological interventions for anxiety disorders in primary care: Current evidence and implementation challenges. BMC Primary Care, 24, 198. https://doi.org/10.1186/s12875-023-02105-9
Twohig, M. P., Levin, M. E., & Hayes, S. C. (2021). Acceptance and commitment therapy as a treatment for anxiety and depression: A review. Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 44(3), 471–487. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psc.2021.05.009
Tyndall, I., Waldeck, D., Pancani, L., Whelan, R., Roche, B., & Dawson, D. L. (2020). The acceptance and commitment therapy model of psychological flexibility: Recent advances and future directions. Journal of Contextual Behavioral Science, 18, 134–143. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jcbs.2020.09.010
World Health Organization. (2023). Mental disorders: Anxiety disorders. https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/mental-disorders
Zhang, Y., Li, X., & Zhou, J. (2023). Anxiety symptoms and sleep disturbance in patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus. Frontiers in Psychiatry, 14, 1132456. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyt.2023.1132456
Published
2026-04-14
How to Cite
Nanda Nurhalizah, Sabirin B. Syukur, Nur Uyuun I. Biahimo, & Andi Safutra Suraya. (2026). The Influence of Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (Act) anxiety disorders in Patients at Limboto Health Center. International Journal of Health, Economics, and Social Sciences (IJHESS), 8(2), 1362~1368. https://doi.org/10.56338/ijhess.v8i2.10735
Issue
Section
Articles
Copyright (c) 2026 Nanda Nurhalizah, Sabirin B. Syukur, Nur Uyuun I. Biahimo, Andi Safutra Suraya
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
