The Mediating Role of Social Support Between Post-Traumatic Stress, Disorder and Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Among Students of the Hazara Community in Quetta

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) is an anxiety disorder that can develop after experiencing a sequence of reactions to recurrent trauma, stress, and frightening thoughts. This quantitative research study explores the intricate connections between Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), Difficulties in Emotion Regulation Scale (DERS), and social support among students from the Hazara community in Quetta. A sample of 250 participants (125 male, 125 female) was selected through convenience sampling. Correlation analysis was performed, revealing strong positive correlations between PTSD and various components of DERS total (.410**, p<.001), DERS non-acceptance (.238**, p<.001), DERS goals (.291**, p<.001), DERS impulses ( .251**, p<.001), DERS awareness (.300**, p<.001) DERS strategies (.254**, p<.001), DERS clarity (.251**,p<.001) indicating that higher PTSD symptoms are associated with increased difficulties in emotion regulation. Conversely, a strong negative correlation emerged between social support and both PTSD (-.488**, p<.001) and DERS components, suggesting that higher social support relates to lower PTSD severity and better emotion regulation skills. In addition, personal characteristics, family characteristics, PTSD severity are significant predictors of DERS. The study further investigated the mediating role of social support in the relationship between PTSD and DERS. The results demonstrated that social support partially mediates this relationship, emphasizing the importance of social support networks in mitigating the impact of PTSD on emotion regulation. The findings underscore the significance of addressing social support as a potential protective factor for individuals managing PTSD symptoms and enhancing emotion regulation skills.