Efficacy of Life Skills Training on Reducing Anxiety and Depression in Drug Dependent Subjects

Background and Objective: Pervasive prevalence of mental disorders among drug dependent individuals may reduce the success of treatment for drug addiction. In this study, the effect of life skills training on attenuation of anxiety and depression among drug dependent people referred to drop-in centers for harm reduction in Zanjan City was investigated. Materials and Methods: The population included ۹۰ drug dependent subjects referred to drop-in center for harm reduction in Zanjan City. Using convenience sampling method, the researchers took advantage of pretest-posttest control group design throughout this study. Beck Anxiety Inventory and Beck Depression Inventory were implemented as instruments. Teaching life skills to the experimental group was carried out for ۸ sessions ۹۰ minutes each. Analysis of covariance in inferential statistics was used to analyze the collected data. Results: The results exhibited diminution in the experimental group’s post-test anxiety and depression scores. Conclusion: Life skills training can be valuable in reducing depression among drug abusers and in the similar way can be efficient in reducing mental disorders of drug dependent people.

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Keywords: Drug dependence , Anxiety , Depression , Life skills