en Substance abuse, dependence, addiction پژوهشي Research Article <p style="text-align: justify;"><span style="font-size:12px;"><span style="font-family:Tahoma;"><span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><b><span lang="FR"><span style="color:black">Background and Objective: </span></span></b><span lang="FR">Women with substance use disorder (SUD) often face considerable psychosocial difficulties, notably intense feelings of loneliness and deficits in cognitive flexibility, both of which can impede their progress toward recovery. The present study aimed to evaluate the efficacy of Emotion-Focused Therapy (EFT) and Compassion-Focused Therapy (CFT) in ameliorating these critical challenges in women with SUD.</span></span></span><br> <span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><b><span lang="FR">Materials and Methods: </span></b><span lang="FR">The present quasi-experimental study was conducted in 2023 among women undergoing treatment for SUD in Ahvaz, Iran. A total of 45 eligible participants were recruited using convenience sampling and then randomly assigned to one of three groups: EFT, CFT, or a control group, with 15 participants in each. The experimental groups received eight 90-minute therapy sessions every week specific to their respective modalities. In contrast, the control group received standard treatment as usual. Data on loneliness and cognitive flexibility were collected at baseline, post-intervention, and a three-month follow-up using validated instruments. Repeated measures analysis of variance (ANOVA) was the primary statistical method employed for data analysis.<span style="font-family:"Myriad Pro",sans-serif"></span></span></span></span><br> <span style="line-height:normal"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><b><span lang="FR">Results:</span></b><span lang="FR"> The results revealed statistically significant improvements in both loneliness and cognitive flexibility within the EFT and CFT groups compared to the control group (P<0.001). These therapeutic benefits were robust and maintained at the three-month follow-up assessment. No significant differences in efficacy were observed between the EFT and CFT interventions.</span></span></span><br> <b><span lang="FR"><span style="line-height:110%">Conclusion:</span></span></b><span lang="FR"><span style="line-height:110%"> This work concludes that both EFT and CFT are effective in reducing loneliness and enhancing cognitive flexibility in women with SUD. Their sustained positive impact suggests that integrating these therapeutic approaches into comprehensive addiction treatment can promote improved coping mechanisms and facilitate lasting recovery.</span></span></span></span></p> Cognitive flexibility, Compassion-focused therapy, Emotion-focused therapy, Loneliness, Substance use disorders 75 81 http://ajnpp.umsha.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-1488-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Maedeh Yazdanipour yazdanipourmad@gmail.com 10031947532846008527 0009-0006-8674-6365 No Department of Counseling, Ahv.C., Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz, Iran. Kobra Kazemian Moghaddam kkazemianmoghaddam@gmail.com 10031947532846008528 10031947532846008528 Yes Department of Psychology, Dez.C., Islamic Azad University, Dezful, Iran. Masoud Shahbazi masoudshahbazi166@gmail.com 10031947532846008529 10031947532846008529 No Department of Counseling, MaS.C., Islamic Azad University, Masjed Soleiman, Iran.