The effectiveness of matrix group therapy on the cognitive regulation of emotion, coping strategies and relapse in methamphetamine dependent people

The present study was conducted with the aim of determining the effectiveness of matrix group therapy on the cognitive regulation of emotion, coping strategies, and relapse in methamphetamine-dependent people. The research method was semi-experimental with a pre-test-post-test design with a control group. The statistical population of the research included all methamphetamine addicts in Miandooab City in 2019. 30 people from the above society were selected according to the entry and exit criteria through targeted sampling and randomly assigned to two experimental and control groups. The experimental group received Matrix group therapy during 14 sessions of 90 minutes (one session per week). The research tools included the Emotion Cognitive Regulation Questionnaire (ERQ) by Gross and John (2003), Coping Strategies (WOCQ) by Lazarus and Folkman (1985), and the Predictive Return Scale (PRC) by Wright (1993). Data were analyzed using multivariate analysis of covariance. The results showed that by controlling the pre-test effect, there is a significant difference between the experimental and control groups in terms of cognitive regulation of emotion, coping strategies, and relapse (p<0.05). Therefore, matrix group therapy has been an efficient method to increase cognitive emotion regulation, and coping strategies and reduce relapse in methamphetamine-dependent people.