The Role of Spiritual Coping and Psychological Capital in Predicting Students’ Addiction

Background and Objectives: Addiction is considered one of the fundamental challenges in the field of mental health among students. Identifying protective and spiritual factors can play a crucial role in preventing the tendency toward substance use. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between spiritual coping, psychological capital, and addiction susceptibility among students. Methods: The present study is descriptive-correlational with an applied purpose. The statistical population consisted of all students of Islamic Azad University in the second semester of the 2024-2025 academic year in Birjand City, Iran. A sample of 330 people was selected using convenience sampling. The research tools included the spiritual coping questionnaire of Khodayarifard et al. (2015), the addictiveness questionnaire of Weed et al. (1992), and the psychological capital questionnaire of Luthans et al. (2007). The data were analyzed using Pearson’s correlation test and stepwise regression analysis in SPSS software, version 27. Results: Pearson correlation analysis revealed a significant negative relationship between positive spiritual coping and addiction susceptibility (r=-0.45), and a significant positive relationship between negative spiritual coping and addiction susceptibility (r=0.15). Psychological capital was also negatively correlated with addiction susceptibility (r=-0.52) (P<0.01). Furthermore, positive spiritual coping was positively correlated with psychological capital (r=0.71), while negative spiritual coping was negatively correlated with it (r=-0.68). Stepwise regression analysis indicated that hope, positive spiritual coping, resilience, optimism, negative spiritual coping, and self-efficacy entered the model sequence and collectively explained 53% of the variance in students’ susceptibility to addiction (R²=0.53, P<0.01). Conclusion: The findings indicate that spiritual coping and psychological capital can serve as protective factors against addiction susceptibility among students. Strengthening these components through educational and counseling interventions can be a practical step in reducing the tendency toward substance use among students.