Comparing the effect of social skills and life skills (Assertiveness, problem solving and anger control) on preparation for addiction, aggression and substance abuse in ninth grade female students

The purpose of the present study was to compare the effects of social skills training and life skills (assertiveness, problem solving and anger control) on addiction preparedness, aggression, and attitude toward substance use among 9th grade female students in Ahvaz. This study was a field trial with pre-test and post-test with control group. The statistical population of all the ninth grade female students of Ahwaz city were 60 girl students who were selected by multistage random sampling. The instruments used were: Addiction Preparation Scale, Addiction Attitude Questionnaire and Ahwaz Aggression Scale. Descriptive statistics (mean and standard deviation) and inferential statistics (Mancova, one-way analysis of variance, and Bonferroni post hoc test) were used for data analysis. The results showed that social skills and life skills training had a significant effect on decreasing addiction readiness, changing attitudes towards drugs and decreasing aggression among students. Also, life skills training had a more significant impact than social skills training on decreasing drug readiness, changing attitudes toward substance use and aggression. It can be said that teaching social skills and life skills to students has a significant role in preventing social harm, especially addiction.