Effectiveness of Metacognitive Therapy in Distress Tolerance and Drug Use Desire in Delinquent Teenagers

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to determine the effectiveness of metacognitive therapy in improving distress tolerance and reducing the desire for drug use among delinquent teenagers in Shahriar.

Methods and Materials: Our research method was a quasi-experimental design with pre-test, post-test, a control group, and a follow-up phase. The statistical population of this study included all delinquent teenagers registered at the Shahriar Juvenile Correction and Training Center in 2022. The sample consisted of 30 male teenagers aged 16 to 18 years, selected through purposeful sampling. They were then divided into two groups of 15: an experimental group and a control group. The experimental group received 12 sessions of metacognitive therapy. Data were collected using the Metacognitive Therapy Scale and analyzed using repeated measures ANOVA in SPSS22.

Findings: The results of this study showed that there was a significant difference in distress tolerance and the desire for drug use in the treatment group in the post-test compared to the pre-test (P<0.01). A significant difference was also observed in the follow-up compared to the pre-test (P<0.05), but no significant difference was found in the follow-up compared to the post-test (P>0.05).

Conclusion: The results indicate that metacognitive therapy can be beneficial in increasing distress tolerance and reducing the desire for drug use among delinquent teenagers. Metacognitive therapy has proven effective in improving distress tolerance and reducing the desire for drug use.