effectiveness of emotion- and compassion-focused therapies on loneliness and cognitive flexibility in women with substance use disorder

Background and objective: women with substance use disorder (sud) often face considerable psychosocial difficulties, notably intense feelings of loneliness and deficits in cognitive flexibility, both of which can impede their progress toward recovery. the present study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of emotion-focused therapy (eft) and compassion-focused therapy (cft) in ameliorating these critical challenges in women with sud.materials and methods: the present quasi-experimental study was conducted in 2023 among women undergoing treatment for sud in ahvaz, iran. a total of 45 eligible participants were recruited using convenience sampling and then randomly assigned to one of three groups: eft, cft, or a control group, with 15 participants in each. the experimental groups received eight 90-minute therapy sessions every week specific to their respective modalities. in contrast, the control group received standard treatment as usual. data on loneliness and cognitive flexibility were collected at baseline, post-intervention, and a three-month follow-up using validated instruments. repeated measures analysis of variance (anova) was the primary statistical method employed for data analysis.results: the results revealed statistically significant improvements in both loneliness and cognitive flexibility within the eft and cft groups compared to the control group (p<0.001). these therapeutic benefits were robust and maintained at the three-month follow-up assessment. no significant differences in efficacy were observed between the eft and cft interventions.conclusion: this work concludes that both eft and cft are effective in reducing loneliness and enhancing cognitive flexibility in women with sud. their sustained positive impact suggests that integrating these therapeutic approaches into comprehensive addiction treatment can promote improved coping mechanisms and facilitate lasting recovery.