a structural model of the tendency toward substance abuse based on childhood trauma in adolescents: the mediating roles of self-compassion and mentalization

The aim of the present study was to explain a structural model of the tendency toward substance abuse based on childhood trauma in adolescents, mediated by roles of self-compassion and mentalization. the population included all high school students )male and female) in the second stage of secondary education in mashhad city during 2023-2024 academic year, with 360 students selected as the sample through multi-stage cluster random sampling. to measure the research variables, the tendency toward substance abuse scale, the childhood trauma questionnaire, the reflective functioning questionnaire, and the self-compassion scale for adolescents were used. the research method was descriptive-correlational using structural equation modeling (sem). the data was analyzed using spss25 and amos24 software. the findings indicated a significant relationship between childhood trauma and the tendency toward substance abuse, which is mediated by self-compassion, certainty mentalization, and uncertainty mentalization. based on these results, it is recommended that focusing on improving certainty mentalization capacity and self-compassion in adolescents who have experienced childhood trauma can be an effective approach to prevent substance abuse and promote their mental health.