Abstract
The study investigated the relationship between perceived social stigma and relapse risk: The moderating role of perceived social support social support. The study was guided by three hypotheses The participants in the study were sixty-five (65): 22 (33.85%) inpatients and 43 (66.15%) out-patients Nicotine dependent patients in Neuropsychiatric hospital Nawfia, situated in Anambra state. The ages of the participants ranged from 18 to 42 years, with a mean age of 22.35 years and a standard deviation of 6.34. Three instruments were used for data collection in this study. They included the multi-dimensional scale of perceived social support (MSPSS) (1988), the perceived stigma of substance abuse scale (PSAS), and the stimulant relapse risk scale (SRRS). The design adopted for this study was a correlation. Pearson’s product moment correlation coefficient and Conditional process for moderated multiple regression were used as the appropriate statistical tools to establish the relationship among the variables and the moderating effects of the moderator in the relationship respectively. The result proved that there was a significant as well as positive correlation between perceived social stigma and relapse risk among Nicotine dependent patients at r = .23, p <.05. Thus, hypothesis 1 was accepted. There was also a significant but negative correlation between perceived social support and relapse risk among Nicotine dependent patients at r = .11, p <.05. Thus, hypothesis 2 was as well, accepted. Similarly, B showed that perceived social support had a significant moderating effect on the relationship between perceived social stigma and relapse risk among Nicotine dependent patients β = .52, p =.98. The study therefore recommended that perceived social stigma directly may contribute to a decrease in relapse risk by fostering a more supportive and inclusive environment for individuals seeking to overcome nicotine dependence.