Drug Cravings and Its Relationship with Family Communication Patterns and Resiliency through the Mediatory Role of Difficulty in Cognitive Emotion Regulation

Background: Clients visiting methadone maintenance treatment (MMT) clinics frequently relapse during the course of treatment. The present study aimed to investigate the relationship between family communication patterns and resiliency and craving for drugs through the mediatory role of difficulty in cognitive emotion regulation among clients being treated by methadone. Methods: It was a descriptive correlational study.  The statistical population included all drug addicts who referred to Ahvaz methadone treatment clinics in 2019 and 213 of which were selected as the sample of the study using convenience sampling. The research instruments included Revised Family Communication Patterns (RFCP), the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), the Cognitive Emotion Regulation Questionnaire (CERQ), and Craving Beliefs Questionnaire (CBQ). The proposed model was evaluated using path analysis with AMOS software. Results: The results revealed a significant negative relationship between family communication patterns and craving for drugs (P<0.01). There was a significant negative relationship between resiliency and craving for drugs in clients being treated by methadone (P<0.01). Difficulties in cognitive emotion regulation had a mediating role in the relationship between family communication and resiliency with craving for drugs (P<0.05). Conclusion: According to the results of this study, the proposed model had a good fit. The family communication patterns as an external and environmental factor and resiliency as an internal and psychological factor affect control over negative emotions and craving for drugs. Therefore, they must be considered by therapists in order to keep the client in the process of treatment.