The Effectiveness of Psychodrama in Relapse Prevention and Reducing Depression among Opiate-Dependent Men

The current study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of psychodrama therapy in relapse prevention (RP) and the reduction of depression among opiate-dependent male patients. A quasi-experimental research design along with pre-post tests and follow-up and control group was employed for this study. Using convenience sampling method, the number of 20 opiate-dependent men who had referred to addiction treatment clinics in Kermanshah (Iran) and successfully passed detoxification program was randomly selected as the participants of the study. The experimental group participated in a twelve-session therapy plan during six weeks. Beck Depression Inventory (BDI) was used for data collection purposes. The results of ANCOVA revealed the existence of a significant difference between the two groups in the post-test and follow-up scores. According to the findings, it can be argued that psychodrama intervention can be used as an effective program in the reduction of depression and relapse prevention among opiate-dependent men.