Emotion regulation in substance use disorders: a systematic review and meta‐analysis

The systematic review was conducted using PubMed, PsycINFO and Embase. We examined cross-sectional studies that compared a SUD group with a control group and measured emotion regulation using the DERS or the ERQ. The primary analysis focused on papers using the DERS, as this was the predominant instrument in the literature.

Twenty-two studies met our primary analysis criteria, representing 1936 individuals with a SUD and 1567 controls. Individuals with SUDs relative to controls had significantly greater DERS scores, with a mean difference of 21.44 [95% confidence interval (CI) = 16.49-26.40, P