Predicting Depression Based on Childhood Trauma, Impulsivity, and Cognitive Emotion Regulation in Substance Abusers

The present study aimed to predict depression based on childhood trauma, impulsivity, and cognitive emotion regulation in substance-dependent individuals.

The method of the present study was descriptive-correlational. The statistical population of the research included all substance-dependent individuals in addiction treatment centers in the city of Tehran in 2020-2021. Among them, 300 people were selected by convenient sampling method and completed the Beck depression questionnaire-second version, the childhood trauma questionnaire-short form, the Barrett impulsivity scale, and the cognitive emotion regulation questionnaire- short version. Simultaneous regression analysis was used to analyze the data.

The results of the research showed that two components of childhood trauma, including emotional abuse and physical abuse, as well as two components of motor impulsivity and non-planning impulsiveness positively predicted depression. Also, three cognitive emotion regulation strategies, including two maladaptive strategies (self-blame and catastrophizing), positively and one adaptive strategy (refocusing on planning) negatively predicted depression.

According to the results of the present study, the components of the variables of childhood trauma, impulsivity, and emotion regulation strategies are the predictors of depression. Therefore, paying attention to these variables is of particular importance in preventing depression.