Exploring The Protective Role of Social Support in Emotional Pain and Suicidal Ideation Among Individuals with Opioid Use Disorder

Punjab in India is one of the most adversely affected regions due to substance use particularly when it comes to the opioid dependence. The present study was aimed at analyzing the protective role of social support in emotional pain and suicidal ideation among young adults with opioid use disorder particularly heroin dependence. For the purpose, 101 males diagnosed with Opioid use disorder, recruited from rehabilitation centers located in the Patiala and Fatehgarh Sahib districts of Punjab. Correlational design was adopted to investigate the role of social support in emotional pain and suicidal ideation among individuals with heroin dependence. Further, finding of the moderation analysis has shown social support (B = -.12, t = -2.58, p = .01) as the significant moderator between suicidal ideation and emotional pain where the final model has explained 55% variance in overall analysis of moderation. The findings have greater implications that if support that inherent in social framework is exercised during clinical interventions it helps in tackling the psychological distress and suicidal ideation attributed by opioid use disorder or heroin dependence.