Effectiveness of detached mindfulness group therapy (DMGT) for married women with major depressive disorder (MDD) in Pakistan

Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) is a widespread mental health condition that affects married women, particularly in low-resource settings like Pakistan, where access to psychological care remains limited. In Pakistan, married women face significant sociocultural and marital stressors that increase their vulnerability to MDD. Despite this, culturally appropriate psychotherapeutic interventions remain underdeveloped and insufficiently integrated into mental health care. Therefore, the objective of this study is to test the effectiveness of the Detached Mindfulness Group Therapy (DMGT) for married women with MDD in Pakistan. The current study used a mixed-method research design to examine the qualitative feedback of experts, group leaders, and group members about the DMGT module and its quantitative outcomes. This study collected data using the Beck Depression Inventory-II (BDIII). This study used the Sidek module development model to develop the DMGT module. The present study used a two-group quasi-experimental design to evaluate the effectiveness of the DMGT's intervention. The purposive sampling method was used to recruit 20 married women (10 = experimental group; 10 = control group) with MDD. The current study used the Friedman and Wilcoxon signed-rank tests to evaluate the effectiveness of the DMGT across pretest, post-test, and follow-up assessments. The results showed that the DMGT module was developed with high reliability and validity. The DMGT significantly reduced the symptoms and severity of MDD among married women in the experimental group. Furthermore, DMGT showed sustained effectiveness at follow-up, confirming its long-term impact. Despite limitations due to its non-randomized design, this study contributes meaningfully by introducing a culturally appropriate psychotherapeutic intervention for married women with MDD in Pakistan. Future research should explore the cross cultural applicability of DMGT intervention