The introduction of the Model of Occupational Wholeness (MOw) in Iran began in 2015 with a workshop at Iran University of Medical Sciences, which led to the formation of the MOW Scholar Group. This initiative continued with Dr. Mehdi Rezai (second from right) from Shahid Beheshti University applying the model to several case studies, the results of which were later published in the Model of Occupational Wholeness book. Today, the model is taught in several universities across Iran and serves as the framework for multiple PhD research projects.
Mohammad Foroutan Rad, PhD candidate in Rehabilitation Counseling at the University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences (USWR)
The MOW mentor in Iran
Dr Mehdi Rezaie Associate Professor, Shahid Beheshty University, Iran
I hold a BSc in Occupational Therapy from the University of Shahid Beheshti, Iran, an MSc and PhD from University of Social Welfare and Rehabilitation Sciences, Iran. I am an academic member of the Department of Occupational Therapy, School of Rehabilitation, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences.
I have been working and educating students in the field of mental health since 2001. I became acquainted with the MOW through participating in MOW workshops and reading related articles, as well as attending the MOW NETWORK discussion sessions with Dr Yazdani. I have used the MOW in working with my clients in mental health settings and been teaching the basic principles and application of the MOW to my students since 2021.
Based on the feedback I have received from students and clients during this period of over ten years, I believe the model is easily understood and can be used in practice. Using Actual and Ideal Triangles was very useful in raising Self-Awareness in clients, and developing Tailored Triangles was an extremely helpful aid in determining clients’ goals. With my clients, we discussed the factors that were affecting the Change process. I found the MOW a practical model with useful visual aids that help build a collaborative relationship between the helper and helpee. I have used the MOW for clients who were cognitively competent and in the future I would like to explore the application of the MOW with people who have impaired cognition.
Dr Mehdi Rassafiani Associate Professor, Charles Stuart University, Austral
As a child and adolescent therapist, I am dedicated to supporting young people and their families in cultivating greater life satisfaction and a richer quality of living.
My clinical and academic journey has consistently drawn me to integrative frameworks that reach beyond functional outcomes to engage with the existential and human dimensions of life. It was in this search that I first encountered the Model of Occupational Wholeness (MOW). I was deeply inspired by its emphasis on autonomy, human agency, and choice, balanced with responsibility as a core dimension of existence. What I value most is how the MOW deepens awareness of human Being while inviting both therapists and clients into reflection, accountability, and conscious becoming.
In my therapeutic work with children and adolescents, I often reflect on how existential and psychological theories can be meaningfully translated into lived, everyday experiences. The MOW provides a coherent yet flexible framework for addressing essential questions such as Being, responsibility, self-awareness, and wholeness in ways that resonate with young people. Its core dimensions—Doing, Being, Belonging, and Becoming—shed new light on developmental pathways in childhood and adolescence, while its dialogical and visual tools create opportunities for fostering autonomy, and self-reflection.
My aspiration is to further explore how the MOW can be adapted and applied in child and adolescent contexts—not only as a therapeutic model but also as a means of empowering families and communities. I believe this approach holds significant potential to guide young people toward deeper self-understanding and to support them in aligning their actions, responsibilities, and aspirations within the broader fabric of their lives, ultimately enabling them to experience a fuller sense of wholeness and existential fulfillment.