Work

Daily affect profiles during addiction recovery: Transition dynamics and links to acute recovery outcomes

Year: 2026

Type: article

Abstract: INTRODUCTION: As individuals in recovery from substance use disorder (SUD) find initial stability, the next milestone is developing the emotional wellbeing that will offer greater quality of life, making affect a critical target. Many investigations into emotion during recovery, however, fail to account for the significant heterogeneity in daily affective experiences. The present study leverages advanced person-centered methods to capture that heterogeneity by identifying types of affect days in recovery and examines their place in daily recovery. METHODS: 129 individuals in SUD recovery were recruited remotely to complete a 10-day daily diary protocol (1,177 days). A mixed-indicator latent profile analysis was conducted on PANAS items to identify distinct profiles of daily affect. Latent profiles were examined in relation to prior-day meaning, next-day binary, and conditional craving, using robust standard errors to account for the repeated measures data structure. RESULTS: A 5-profile solution was selected: Prevalent NA (14% of affect days), Prevalent NA-Mild PA (30%), High Arousal Affect (11%), Intense PA (17%), and Mixed Affect (28%). Compared to other profiles, Intense PA and High Arousal Affect days were associated with higher prior-day meaning, lower odds of next-day craving, and lower levels of next-day craving among craving days. CONCLUSION: Not only do results demonstrate the prevalence of NA-PA mixed days in recovery, but a second dimension - arousal - was also uncovered in affect patterns. Types of affect days differentially predicted acute recovery outcomes, with High Arousal Affect promoting recovery, warranting consideration of arousal in future studies.

Source: Addictive Behaviors

DOI: 10.1016/j.addbeh.2026.108883

Authors: Joseph H. Lancaster, Timothy R. Brick, Hannah B. Apsley, H. Harrington Cleveland

Institutions: Pennsylvania State University, University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Language: English

Topic: Substance Abuse Treatment and Outcomes

Subfield: Epidemiology

Field: Medicine

Domain: Health Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $4,450