A Comparison between the Temperament and Character of Patients Suffering from Major Depression with and without Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and Normal People

The purpose of this study was to compare the temperament and character of patients suffering from major depression with and without Substance Use Disorder (SUD) and normal people.
This research was a causal-comparative study. The statistical population of the study consisted of patients with major depressive disorder who referred to Tabriz medical centers in the second and third quarters of 2017. Thirty patients suffering from major depressive disorder with substance use disorder and 30 patients without substance use disorder were selected by purposive sampling method and 30 normal subjects were selected by convenience sampling method. The temperament and character inventory (TCI) and Beck depression Inventory-II (BDI-II) were employed in the process of data collection.
The findings of this study revealed that depressed patients showed significantly higher novelty seeking and harm avoidance, and lower perseverance, self-direction, and cooperation than normal people. Moreover, depressed patients with substance use disorder reported a high degree of novelty seeking and a lower level of perseverance, self-direction, and cooperation in comparison to depressed patients without comorbidity.
The results of this study indicated that the dimensions of temperament and character have a significant role in the development of mental disorders. Identifying these dimensions in high risk groups can be effective in developing preventive and therapeutic interventions for depression and substance use disorders.