Objective: In this study, it was planned to investigate the effect of traumatic events experienced by individuals diagnosed with alcohol and substance use disorder on the severity of addiction.

Method: The participants of this study are 50 people who applied to NPİSTANBUL Brain Hospital Amatem service for the treatment of substance use disorder. Of these 50 participants, 47 are men and 3 are women. The research data were collected through the scales given to the survey participants. The Addiction Profile Index (BAPI) was applied to the participants to measure the severity of addiction, and the Traumatic Experiences Scale (TEC) was applied to measure their traumatic experiences.

Results: In the study, the level of significance was taken as 0.05 and 0.001. A moderately significant positive correlation was found between the participants' traumatic experiences scores and their total addiction index scores.

Conclusion: According to the findings obtained in the study, the addiction index diagnosis sub-dimension scores were higher in male participants compared to female participants. It has been shown that childhood traumas impair neural structure and function, making individuals more susceptible to cognitive deficits and psychiatric diseases, including substance abuse (18). Therefore, it is important to evaluate and consider the history of childhood traumatic experiences in relation to substance abuse. The results obtained emphasize the importance of traumatic experiences in addictions to a degree that can contribute to the applications to be developed for addiction treatment and to future research.

Objective: Tobacco use, which has been one of the leading causes of preventable death and disability worldwide for many years, increases susceptibility and transmission risk in respiratory infections such as COVID-19, negatively affecting the prognosis. World Health Organization (WHO) recommends quitting smoking or reducing daily consumption, especially during the pandemic, to reduce potential harm. The aim of our study is to present our experience with the application of nicotine replacement therapy (NRT) and the course of psychiatric illness in hospitalized smokers with severe mental illness and COVID-19. Considering the recent pandemic, it is crucial to recommend smoking cessation and provide treatment support to psychiatric patients with severe mental illness accompanied by physical illnesses, infectious diseases, and especially COVID-19 infection, to achieve better outcomes in the treatment of comorbidities and infections.

Method: Our study included 18 smoking patients out of 23 with severe mental illness who were hospitalized in the psychiatric ward and had COVID-19 infection. Records of patients who received NRT were retrospectively reviewed. The severity of nicotine dependence was assessed using the Fagerström Test for Nicotine Dependence (FTND), and agitation was evaluated using the Excited Component Subscale of the Positive and Negative Syndrome Scale (PANSS-EC). PANSS-EC scores at baseline and on day 7 were compared. FTND scores at baseline and on day 30 post-discharge were compared. The correlation between FTND and variables such as the rate of reduction in PANSS-EC and length of hospital stay was investigated.

Results: Two-thirds of the patients had high nicotine dependence with FTND scores ≥ 6. At the end of the first week, an average reduction of 43.1% in PANSS-EC scores was observed. A moderate positive correlation was found between baseline FTND scores and the reduction rate in PANSS-EC scores, and a moderate negative correlation between baseline FTND scores and duration of hospitalization. On the 30th day after discharge, it was found that all patients had resumed smoking, with 44% having FTND scores ≥ 6. A significant decrease was observed when comparing baseline FTND scores with FTND scores on the 30th day post-discharge.

Conclusion: It is important to consider nicotine withdrawal symptoms in patients who smoke and are admitted to a psychiatric unit where tobacco use is restricted, and to consider NRT as part of the inpatient treatment programme. However, according to our results, NRT alone is not sufficient for smoking cessation treatment. It should be supported by motivational interviewing, individual counselling or psychoeducation. In addition, the fact that the patients in our study quit smoking with acute and extrinsic motivation due to COVID-19 infection may be one of the factors that caused them to relapse after discharge. Therefore, comprehensive smoking cessation treatment and NRT for psychiatric patients should be an integral part of inpatient treatment programmes during and after the pandemic. 

Objective: In this study, it was aimed to Decipher the relationship between the emotion regulation difficulty levels and psychological well-being levels of individuals who use tobacco.

Method: The study group of this study was composed of people between the ages of 18-65 Dec. The research data were collected by reaching 212 people virtually through a survey. The data were sent to the participants online with the ‘Sociodemographic Information Form’ prepared by the researcher, the ‘Emotion Regulation Difficulty Scale’ (DERS) and the ‘Psychological Well-Being Scale’ (PWB) scales and they were asked to answer and the answers were evaluated and collected.

Results: Within the scope of the study, the data of 212 participants who smoked were examined. The sociodemographic variables of the participants were compared with their emotion regulation difficulties and psychological well-being levels. In addition, the relationship between emotion regulation difficulties and psychological well-being levels of smokers was examined. According to the findings obtained in the study, significant differences were found in the scores of psychological well-being and difficulties in emotion regulation in terms of gender, marital status, employment status, income level, psychological disorder, presence of a smoker in the family, reason for smoking.

Conclusion: In addition, a negative, moderate and significant relationship was found between psychological well-being and difficulty in regulating emotion in smokers.  The total score of emotion regulation difficulty predicts psychological well-being scores negatively and significantly. The model explains the variance by 14%. According to the findings regarding the prediction of psychological well-being scores by sub-dimensions of emotion regulation difficulties, it was found that difficulty scores in developing emotion regulation strategies predicted psychological well-being scores negatively and significantly. The model explains the variance at a rate of 16%.

Objective: Thirdhand smoke is an important public health problem. The aim of this study is to adapt the ‘‘Beliefs About ThirdHand Smoke’’ scale developed by Haardorfer et al to Turkish, to examine its validity and reliability.

Method: This methodological study was conducted in Ankara between 01.05-29.6.2021. Turkish version of the original scale “Beliefs About ThirdHand Smoke Scale’’ was obtained firstly. For the scale validity and reliability analyzes were performed: For content validity expert views were received, for construct validity confirmatory factor analysis; for reliability internal consistency, intra-class correlation were performed. Voluntary 256 adults who applied to polyclinics of Kecioren Training and Research Hospital, spoke Turkish, communicated, smoked or living at least one person who smoked, “socyodemographic features form” and Turkish version of  the original scale “Beliefs About Third Hand Smoke Scale’’ was applied face to face. The data analysis used IBM SPSS 24.0 and AMOS 21.

Results: Turkish adaptation of the original scale “Beliefs About Third Hand Smoke Scale’’ is 9 items, 2 factors. The content validity index for all items Turkish version of  the original scale “Beliefs About Thirdhand Smoke Scale’’ is ≥0.80; there is inter-expert fit. Cronbach's alpha values overall/factors are 0.910/0.849, 0.835 respectively; scale is high reliable, factors are  acceptably reliable. Item-total correlation is 0.580-0.794; each item is acceptably distinctive, should remain at scale. Intra-class correlation, inter-items correlation matrix r values are 0.376-0.771; items are related intermediately, internally consistent. Confirmatory factor analysis goodness-of-fit values, CMIN/df=3,1, RMSEA=0,091, RMR=0,054, GFI=0,946, AGFI=0,889, NFI=0,953, CFI=0,967; two-factor structure of the scale well-fitting to the data was confirmed.

Conclusion: Turkish adaptation of the original scale developed by Haardorfer et al in 2017 “Beliefs About Thirdhand Smoke Scale’’ is a reliable and valid measurement tool.

Turkish version of  the original scale “Beliefs About Thirdhand Smoke Scale’’ can applied in studies and trainings, increase awareness of the thirdhand smoke and guide the fight against tobacco.

In this study, the relationship between social media use disorder and life satisfaction in adults was examined. 221 adult individuals participated in the study. Sociodemographic Information Form, Social Media Addiction Scale (SMAS) and Satisfaction with Life Scale were applied to the participants. The survey responses of the participants were entered into SPSS 28.0 package software and statistical analyzes were conducted. Independent sample t-test and one-way ANOVA were applied for comparisons in terms of sociodemographic variables. Pearson correlation was applied to examine the relationship between social media use disorder and life satisfaction. Multiple regression analysis was applied to examine the prediction of life satisfaction by social media. use disorder to the findings of the study, male participants had higher social media use disorder scores than female participants. On the other hand, as the time spent on social media and the number of social media applications increased, social media use disorder scores increased. On the other hand, the social media use disorder scores of single participants and participants reporting low education level were found to be significantly higher. When the findings related to life satisfaction were analyzed, it was found that the life satisfaction scores of the participants who were married, had a higher income level and were employed were significantly higher. When the relationship between life satisfaction and social media use disorder scores was analyzed, it was found that there was a significant relationship between the increase in social media scores and the decrease in life satisfaction scores. In addition, it was found that the conflict sub-dimension of social media use disorder predicted life satisfaction negatively and significantly. The findings of the study are expected to contribute to future applications and researches in terms of understanding the factors related to social media use, which has become an indispensable part of daily life.

Objective: This study was designed to investigate the relationship between family involvement, stigmatization, perceived social support, and treatment motivation in drug addiction treatment.

Method: The participants of our study consisted of individuals receiving substance use disorder treatment at the NP Brain Hospital AMATEM service and the Green Crescent Counseling Center (YEDAM). The research included a total of 98 voluntary participants, including 88 males and 10 females, aged 18 and above, receiving substance use disorder treatment. Among the participants, 57 had family involvement in the treatment, while the remaining 41 did not have their families involved in the treatment process. Data were collected using the Personal Information Form, the YEDAM Substance Addiction Stigmatization Scale (YMBSÖ), the Multidimensional Perceived Social Support Scale (ÇBADÖ), and the Treatment Motivation Questionnaire (TMA).

Results: When the results were evaluated, a significant relationship was found between the family subscale of perceived social support and the treatment confidence subscale of the treatment motivation questionnaire. Among the subscales of the Treatment Motivation Questionnaire, the score for seeking interpersonal help was higher in patients whose families were involved in the treatment. When the stigma scores of participants living alone were compared with those living with their families, it was concluded that individuals living alone had higher stigma scores.

Conclusion: The findings from our study have shown that substance addiction negatively affects many essential aspects of patients' lives, such as their social relationships, family and environmental connections, as well as their work and academic lives. Substance addiction, which is becoming an increasingly significant societal issue, requires a multidisciplinary approach that involves not only medical treatment but also the involvement of families and society in order to regulate individuals' social lives, education and work lives, and family and environmental relationships.

Objective: Covid-19 outbreak, which was declared a pandemic on 11.03.2020 by the World Health Organization (WHO), affected Turkey too and the first case in Turkey was detected on March 11, 2020. With mandatory restrictions, internet use has become increasingly inevitable in the Covid-19 pandemic. In this study, we aimed to investigate the change in the gaming behavior and smartphones usage in adult individuals during the Covid-19 Pandemic and the relationship between these behaviours and experiential avoidance.

Method: In this study, 269 paticipants between the ages of 18 and 65 who met the inclusion criteria were recruited between the dates 08.01.2022 and 28.03.2022. Participants were given 5 scales which were; Socio-demographic Data Form, Smartphone Addiction Scale – Short Form (SAS-SF), Internet Gaming Disorder Scale (IGDS9–SF), Multidimensional Experiential Avoidance Scale – 30 (MEAQ–30), and Acceptance and Action Form–2 (AAQ-2).

Results: 60.8% of the participants stated that the duration of smartphone usage increased and 71.5% stated that the gaming time did not change during the pandemic. It is shown that gaming behavior and smartphone usage is related with procrastination which is a subscale of MEAQ-30. Smartphone addiction is predicted by experiential avoidance, procrastination and using time and gaming disorder is predicted by gaming time.

Conclusion: In the current research, on smartphone addiction; it has been observed that it is related to experiential avoidance, especially procrastination sub-scale. Furthermore, the effect of time spent with a smartphone and sleeping with phone affect negatively in terms of smartphone addiction. It is shown that,  for gaming disorder, gaming time is the most predictive factor.