The effects of childhood traumas and emotion regulation difficulties on substance use in young adults

The present study aimed to examine the moderating role of difficulties in emotion regulation in the relationship between childhood trauma and substance use tendency among young adults. The study was conducted on a non-clinical sample of 205 participants aged between 18 and 35. Participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire (Çocukluk Çağı Travmaları Ölçeği), the Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (Duygu Düzenleme Güçlüğü Ölçeği), and the Addiction Profile Index Short Form (Bağımlılık Profil İndeksi Kısa Formu). Data were analyzed using the Generalized Linear Model (GLM), Mann-Whitney U, and Kruskal-Wallis tests via the Jamovi software. The results indicated that childhood trauma significantly predicted substance use tendency and that difficulties in emotion regulation served as a significant moderator of this relationship. Specifically, the predictive power of childhood trauma on substance use tendency was stronger among individuals with higher levels of emotion regulation difficulties, whereas the relationship was weaker among those with lower levels of difficulty. These findings suggest that early traumatic experiences may lead to increased vulnerability to substance use, especially in individuals with limited emotional regulation capacity. The study highlights the importance of strengthening emotion regulation skills in preventive interventions and offers practical implications for clinical work with at-risk young adults.