The Effectiveness of Cognitive-Behavioral Group Therapy on Craving and Relapse in Addicts with HIV

Today, one of the most important public health problems in the world is the unpleasant consequence of substance abuse disorders. This study was aimed to investigate the effectiveness of cognitive-behavioral group therapy on carving and relapse among addicts with HIV in the Kermanshah city.

The research design was quasi-experimental with the control group and post-test pretest. The statistical population was the addicts with positive HIV in Kermanshah City and 20 people were selected using the J Power sampling method based on the sample size formulation and were divided into experimental group (n=10) and control group (n=10). The experimental group received 10 sessions of cognitive-behavioral group therapy. Pretest and post-test of Wrightchr('39')s Relapse Prevention Scale (RPS) (1991) were used. Data were analyzed by using the covariance method with SPSS-23.

The results showed cognitive-behavioral therapy reduced the desire and risk of recurrence in the experimental group compared to the control group at the level p <0.001.

The results showed the importance of cognitive-behavioral group therapy to reduce craving and relapse addicts with HIV. Therefore, depending on the importance of complementary aspects of drug therapy, psychological therapy may enhance addiction psychological problems.