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Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) Intervention for Emotion Dysregulation among Patients with Substance Use Disorder

Syeda Afeera, Sajid Iqbal Alyana

Pakistan Journal of Positive Psychology July 29, 2026 DOI: 10.67785/pjpp.2.121 (opens in new tab)

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Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Randomized controlled trial Peer reviewed
Sample size 40
Population Male patients aged 20–40 with substance use disorder (SUD) at a rehabilitation center
Intervention Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT)
Measures Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale–18 (DERS-18)
Topics Addiction Meditation
Key findings MBCT plus treatment as usual significantly reduced emotion dysregulation compared to treatment as usual alone, with mean DERS-18 scores dropping from 49.40 to 37.30 in the MBCT group (p < .001).

Abstract

The present study examined the efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) in reducing emotion dysregulation among patients with SUD. A randomized controlled trial with a pre-test and post-test design was conducted at Umeed-e-Shifa Rehabilitation Centre, Bani Gala. Forty male participants aged 20–40 years meeting DSM-5-TR criteria for SUD were selected through purposive sampling and randomly assigned to an experimental group (MBCT + Treatment as Usual [TAU]) and a control group (TAU only). Emotion dysregulation was assessed using the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale–18 (DERS-18). Data were analyzed using paired-sample t-test and independent-sample t-tests on gain scores in IBM SPSS Version 27. Results indicated a significant reduction in emotion dysregulation among participants who received MBCT, with mean scores decreasing from pre-test (M = 49.40, SD = 13.38) to post-test (M = 37.30, SD = 8.62), p < .001. Independent sample t-test comparisons showed significantly greater improvement in the experimental group compared to the control group (p < .001). Keywords. Substance Use Disorder, Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy, emotion dysregulation, rehabilitation

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Ketamine psychotherapy for heroin addiction: immediate effects and two-year follow-up. Detoxified heroin-addicted patients 2002 Randomized controlled trial n = 70
A Single Ketamine Infusion Combined With Motivational Enhancement Therapy for Alcohol Use Disorder: A Randomized Midazolam-Controlled Pilot Trial. Adults with alcohol dependence engaged in motivational enhancement therapy 2019 Randomized controlled trial n = 40
A Single Ketamine Infusion Combined With Mindfulness-Based Behavioral Modification to Treat Cocaine Dependence: A Randomized Clinical Trial. Cocaine-dependent adults 2019 Randomized controlled trial n = 55
Single Versus Repeated Sessions of Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy for People with Heroin Dependence Detoxified inpatients with heroin dependence 2007 Randomized controlled trial n = 59

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