Personality Traits as Predictors towards Readiness to Change among Female Drug Addicts

Problem statement: Understanding the personality traits among women who are involved in drug addiction is a crucial issue prior to starting any intervention programs. It may provide an indication of their readiness to receive treatment and change this addictive behavior. This study was conducted to examine the predictive relationship between personality traits and readiness to change among women drug addicts in Malaysia. Approach: The study employed survey research involving the administration of two standardized psychological tests which were the Eysenck Personality Questionnaire Revised Short Version (EPQ-RS) and the Stages of Change Readiness and Treatment Eagerness Scale (SOCRATES). A total of 109 female drug addicts who were undergoing drug treatment in a female rehabilitation center in Malaysia participated in this study. Data were analyzed using Pearson correlation and multiple regression analysis. Results: The current study shows that there were significant correlations between the traits of extraversion, neuroticism and psychoticism with all the three stages of readiness to change. The study also demonstrated that high extraversion and neuroticism traits significantly predicted the recognition subscale. Conclusion: Being high on neuroticism and low in psychoticism traits significantly predicted the respondents to be ambivalence about changing their addictive behaviors. Likewise, being high on extraversion and neuroticism as well as low on psychoticism significantly predicted the taking steps subscale.