Religiousness and self-control in patients with substance use disorder (SUD) and comorbid attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD)
Year: 2025
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
Abstract: Background: Religiousness has been positively associated with better mental health and stronger self-control, including in patients with substance use disorders (SUDs) or attention deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD). However, data on religiousness in patients with SUD and comorbid ADHD are lacking. Objectives: This study aims to test in patients with SUD and comorbid ADHD whether (1) religiousness is negatively associated with SUD and ADHD symptom severity, and (2) self-control mediates the assumed negative association of religiousness with SUD and ADHD symptom severity. Method: In an international cohort study, baseline religiousness, self-control, SUD and ADHD symptom severity, and craving were assessed with self-report questionnaires and structured clinical interviews in 578 treatment-seeking SUD patients with comorbid adult ADHD (SUD + ADHD). Data were analyzed using structural equation modeling (SEM). Results: Stronger self-control wad associated with lower severity of both ADHD and SUD, but higher religiousness was only associated with lower severity of ADHD. This association was not mediated by self-control. Conclusion: Religiousness may have a salutary relationship with ADHD severity, but not with SUD severity. While self-control was associated with lower symptom severity for both co-occurring conditions, it may not be involved in the potentially salutary effects of religiousness in patients with SUD + ADHD.
Authors: Alex HA Begeman, Arnt Schellekens, Wim van den Brink, Csaba Barta, Christoffer Brynte, Cleo L Crunelle, Laura De Fuentes-Merillas, Zsolt Demetrovics, Geert Dom, Johan Franck, Lara Grau, Mariely Hernandez, Romain Icick, Máté Kapitány-Fövény, Frances R Levin, Mathias Luderer, Wiebren Markus, Frieda IA Matthys, Franz Moggi, Michiel van Kernebeek, Jose A Ramos-Quiroga, Ortal Slobodin, Hanneke Schaap-Jonker
Institutions: Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Radboud University Nijmegen, Radboud University Medical Center, Nijmegen Institute for Scientist Practitioners in Addiction, Donders Centre for Neuroscience, Amsterdam University Medical Centers, Semmelweis University, Karolinska Institutet, Vrije Universiteit Brussel, Universitair Ziekenhuis Brussel, Eötvös Loránd University, Flinders University, University of Antwerp, Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona, Centro de Investigación Biomédica en Red de Salud Mental, Vall d'Hebron Institut de Recerca, Vall d'Hebron Hospital Universitari, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York State Psychiatric Institute, Inserm, Université Paris Cité, Assistance Publique – Hôpitaux de Paris, Optimisation Thérapeutique en Neuropsychopharmacologie, Columbia University, Goethe University Frankfurt, University Hospital Frankfurt, IrisZorg, University of Bern, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam
Language: English
Subfield: Health
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Funder: Idorsia Pharmaceuticals
OpenAlex ID: W4411289601