Meta-Analysis of the Factors Influencing Addiction in Hamadan Province from 2012 to 2021

Abstract

Drug addiction is one of the most important social issues today in all societies, serving as a precursor to many subsequent social harms and deviations. This study aims to conduct a meta-analysis of research conducted on the factors influencing addiction over the past ten years in Hamadan Province. The research population consists of joint research projects from the Social Affairs Office and the Security and Police Affairs Office of the Hamadan Governorate, which are annually assigned to a group of researchers for execution. One study was selected from the conducted research, deemed appropriate, and registered. For analysis, Excel software and version 2 of the CMA software were used. In examining social variables, the effect size in the fixed model was 0.292, and in the random model, it was 0.303, both of which were significant. In examining individual factors, the effect size in the fixed model was -0.149, which was significant, while in the random model, the effect size was -0.111, which was not significant. In examining family factors, the effect size in the fixed model was -0.125, which was significant, while in the random model, it was -0.115, which was not significant. The results generally indicated heterogeneity in all three groups examined. The results of the Igar regression test in the individual, family, and social categories indicated no significant deviation from the regression line, thus confirming the absence of bias. The research findings show that social factors have the highest impact on the tendency toward addiction, followed by individual and family factors in terms of their effect on addiction levels. Nevertheless, interaction with delinquent peers, unemployment, early marriage and its associated family problems (especially in the county areas of the province), parental divorce, economic poverty, marginalization, the decline of social values in society, and ultimately the low cost of drugs, are among the most influential factors in addiction in Hamadan Province.