Cited by 235Substance Abuse Treatment and OutcomesNeural and Behavioral Psychology StudiesChild and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development

Emotion Regulation and Substance Use: A Meta-Analysis

Open access
Weiss, Nicole H., Kiefer, Reina, Goncharenko, Svetlana, Raudales, Alexa M., Forkus, Shannon R., Schick, Melissa R., Contractor, Ateka A.·2022·Drug and Alcohol Dependence

Abstract

There has been exponential growth in research on emotion regulation and substance use in the past decade. The current meta-analysis evaluated variability in the magnitude of the relation between aspects of emotion regulation and substance use. A search of PsycINFO, Embase, PubMed, CINAHL Plus, and PILOTS in December 2020 resulted in 6642 initial studies, of which 95 met inclusion criteria (association between emotion regulation and substance use was reported, participants were > 18 years old, article was in English). A total of 445 effects were obtained (N = 156,025 participants; weighted M age = 29.31; 59.5% female; 66.1% White; 76.6% non-clinical). Emotion regulation and substance use were significantly related (r = 0.19; p < 0.001; 95%CI [0.17, 0.20]). Emotion regulation abilities were generally more strongly related to substance use than emotion regulation strategies; this pattern was stronger for behavioral vs. cognitive abilities and extended to both negative and positive emotions. Relations were stronger for older and clinical samples; mixed effects were found for sex and no conclusive effects were found for race. Despite limitations of the existing literature (e.g., cross-sectional, self-reports), results indicated that the magnitude of the relation between emotion regulation and substance use varied considerably as a function of emotion regulation and substance use constructs and sample characteristics.

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Crossref · 10.1016/j.drugalcdep.2021.109131

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Research works printed but not linked: 3

  1. Kober H, & Bolling D (2014). Emotion regulation in substance use disorders (Vol. 2nd). Guilford Press.
  2. Weiss NH, Goncharenko S, Raudales AM, Forkus SR, & Contractor AA (in press). PTSD symptoms are assoicated with alcohol misuse through alcohol use to down-regulate positive emotions. Addictive Behaviors. PMC7059215 32006684
  3. Weiss NH, Tull MT, & Sullivan TP (2015). Emotion dysregulation and risky, self-destructive, and health compromising behaviors: A review of the literature. Nova Science Publishers.

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Authors
Weiss, N. H., Kiefer, R., Goncharenko, S., Raudales, A. M., Forkus, S. R., Schick, M. R., & Contractor, A. A.
Affiliations
  • University of Rhode Island (US)
  • University of North Texas (US)
Corresponding author
Weiss, Nicole H.
Venue
Drug and Alcohol Dependence
Publisher
Elsevier BV
Published
2022-01
Volume
230
Pages
109131
ISSN
0376-8716 (ISSN-L)
OpenAlex
W3209551362
Cited by
235
References
192
Citations by year
2026: 52 · 2025: 56 · 2024: 65 · 2023: 41 · 2022: 21
FWCI
4.86
Type
journal article
Language
en
Open access
Locations
  • Drug and Alcohol Dependence (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed (publishedVersion)
  • PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
Funders
  • National Institute on Drug Abuse (F31DA051167, K23DA039327)
  • National Institute of General Medical Sciences (P20GM125507)
Topics
  • Health Sciences › Medicine › Epidemiology › Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes
  • Life Sciences › Neuroscience › Cognitive Neuroscience › Neural and Behavioral Psychology Studies
  • Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
Keywords
emotion regulation, substance use, emotion regulation strategies, emotion regulation ability, negative emotions, positive emotions, age differences, sex differences, racial differences
MeSH terms
Emotional Regulation, Adolescent, Adult, Cognition, Cross-Sectional Studies, Emotions, Female, Humans, Male, Substance-Related Disorders

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