Exploring Coping Mechanism Across Age Groups Among Addicted and Non-Addicted Individuals

Addiction often emerges as a response to unprocessed stress, unresolved trauma, and overwhelming negative emotions that draw individuals deeper into a cycle of dependency. For individuals struggling with addiction, coping mechanisms are not merely supportive; they are fundamental to the recovery process. The purpose of this study was to explore the coping strategies used by drug addict and non-addict’s individuals and in reference to their age. The data was randomly selected from Nainital district from Uttarakhand. The Data comprised of 40 drug addicts (20 young adults and 20 middle aged in each group) from different rehabilitation centers and 40 non-drug addict individuals. The Coping Strategies Scale developed by Srivastava (2001) comprised of 5 dimensions (Behavioral-Approach, Cognitive-Approach, Cognitive-Behavioral, Behavioral Avoidance and Cognitive-Avoidance Approach) that was administered on 80 participants. For statistical analysis t- test was used. The result revealed that there was a significant difference found at 0.05 level between addicted and non-addicted individuals across all categories of coping strategies. Notably, addicted individuals demonstrated a greater reliance on behavioral avoidance strategies compared to non-addicted individuals. A significant difference at the 0.05 level was observed between young adults and middle-aged adults in cognitive avoidance strategy. However, no significant differences were found across other categories of coping strategies. Keywords: Coping Strategies, Drug Addicts, Non-addicts and Rehabilitation.