The Relationship of Substance Abuse with Attachment and Emotion Regulation

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study to examine the characteristics of substance use (SU) and its relationship with psychiatric symptoms, emotion regulation and attachment in youth and young adults with substance abuse in the southeast region of Turkey who have been exposed to repetitive trauma. Method: Forty-four patients with substance use complaints completed Sociodemographic Form, Addiction Profile Index (BAPI), BAPI-Clinical Form. Association of SU disorder diagnosis with both emotion regulation as measured by the Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) and the attachment style as measured by Parent Attachment Tool is evaluated. Results: Our sample consists of 44 male patients a mean age of 23.77 years. All of them can read and write, but none of them are university graduates. The rate of being single in marital status is 66%. 60% of them have a low income level. 45% of them do not work. 25% of the sample meets the addiction criteria. Compared to the addicted and non-addicted groups, the addicted groups had significantly higher scores on inadequate anger control, lack of safe behavior, pleasure-seeking behavior, impulsivity, depression, and anxiety. The non-addicted group had a higher mean for cognitive reappraisal. The non-addicted group had a higher mean for cognitive reappraisal. Inadequate anger control, pleasure seeking behavior and duration of anxiety about substance use were found to be risk factors for addiction. Conclusions: The addicted group is different from the non-addicted group for BAPI subscales and ERQ subscale- a cognitive reappraisal. The current findings expand our understanding of the psychological and behavioral aspects of addiction, especially in provinces such as Şırnak, where traumatic life events are repeated, as there are many risk factors for SUD.