APA 2026 Annual Meeting Preview for Addiction Sessions

The 2026 annual meeting of the American Psychological Association (APA) is just a few weeks away. From August 6 through August 8, in Washington D.C., the APA annual meeting is three days of ethics events, networking opportunities, and educational sessions.

Today, we have a preview of some sessions on addiction that are currently scheduled to take place during the APA 2026 annual meeting. All times and dates are accurate as of July 2, 2026. Consult the full schedule for the most up-to-date information.

Addiction Sessions at APA 2026 Annual Meeting

Thursday, August 6

• A Disease of Loneliness: Addiction through an Attachment Theory Lens
  • 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
  • Description: This session examines addiction through an attachment theory framework, highlighting mechanisms linking insecure attachment, affect regulation deficits, and relational disconnection to substance use disorder risk and maintenance. Integrating emerging neurobiological and clinical evidence, we outline implications for assessment, prevention, and treatment to support advancement of addiction science and practice.

• Value-Based Decision-Making in People Recovering from Opioid Use Disorder
  • 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
  • Description: Reinforcer-specific value-based decision-making (VBDM) is an emerging framework in addiction science for quantifying the neurobehavioral mechanisms underlying the development of, and recovery from, substance use disorder. VBDM combines behavioral tasks with drift diffusion modeling (DDM) to estimate drift rate and response boundary, reflecting the expected value of an option and the degree of response caution, respectively.

• Perceived Stigma of Immediate vs. Distant Family Members Toward Receiving Treatment for SUDs
  • 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
  • Description: In 17 years, more than 500,000 Americans died due to addiction, underscoring a crisis with widespread societal consequences (Anderson et al., 2022). Substance use disorders (SUDs) are among the most stigmatized conditions in the United States and worldwide, influencing the ability to adhere to human compassion and empathy (Smith et al., 2016; Avery & Avery, 2019). Perceived stigma can interfere with treatment (Pettersen et al., 2019); therefore, it is important to understand immediate and distant family members’ perceived stigma toward addiction and to determine what differentiating factors may exist.

• Effectiveness of Group Psychotherapy on Substance Use and Addiction
  • 4:00 PM – 5:00 PM
  • Description: Group-based interventions are widely used in the treatment of substance use disorders (SUDs); yet the effectiveness of group psychotherapy relative to treatment as usual (TAU) and other treatment modalities remains variably supported in the literature. This review synthesizes findings from randomized controlled trails and quasi-experimental studies examining the efficacy of group psychotherapy as an intervention modality for substance use and addiction. 

Friday, August 7

• Advancing Culturally Responsive Addiction Treatment
  • 8:30 AM – 9:30 AM
  • Description: This session examines cross-cultural differences in the relationship between dispositional mindfulness and gambling, barriers to patient substance use treatment access, and gaps in the clinical training of providers to Latinx and Black individuals. This session provides psychologists with strategies for culturally-responsive assessment, medication-assisted treatment, and mindfulness-based interventions across diverse populations.

• Genetic and Physiological Biomarkers Associated with Gaming Addiction
  • 10:00 AM – 11:00 AM
  • Description: Internet Gaming Disorder (IGD), recognized in DSM-5 and ICD-11, has been associated with neurobiological mechanisms similar to substance-related addictions. While psychological and behavioral correlates are well documented, the genetic and physiological biomarkers underlying IGD remain underexplored.

• Characteristics of Military Personnel Engaged in Addiction Treatment Care
  • 11:30 AM – 12:30 PM
  • Description: Military personnel receiving addiction treatment often present with complex clinical, psychosocial, and occupational factors that shape their engagement in care. Despite the prevalence of substance use disorders within military populations, limited descriptive literature examines the characteristics of service members who engage in addiction treatment programs, particularly within intensive outpatient settings.

• Existential Spiritual Well-Being, Resilience, and Smartphone Addiction
  • 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
  • Description: This study examined the mediating effect of resilience in the relationship between existential spiritual well-being (ESWB) and smartphone addiction among university students. 

• Objectively Measured Smartphone Usage Patterns and Smartphone Addiction
  • 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
  • Description: Using a phone app to record app usage patterns over 7-15 days for 137 university students, this study examined how average daily usage duration of different app categories were associated with smartphone addiction, well-being, and daily measured sleep quality.

• Emerging Trends in Addiction Treatment in Military and Civilian Populations
  • 2:30 PM – 3:30 PM
  • Description: Substance use disorders (SUDs) continue to evolve in prevalence, presentation, and clinical complexity across both military and civilian populations. The emergence of new illicit and synthetic drugs (e.g., Kratom, Blue Lotus, etc.), alongside advances in neuroscience and rapid changes in technology and service delivery systems, has significantly influenced contemporary addiction treatment.

Saturday, August 8

• Emerging Adults’ Experiences of Estrangement From a Parent With SUD
  • 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM
  • Description: This phenomenological study examines the lived experiences of emerging adults estranged from a parent with a SUD. Seven semi-structured interviews were conducted with emerging adults aged 18–29 who reported emotional and/or physical estrangement from a parent with a history of substance use.

• Relational Dynamics in Recovery: When Attachment Meets Addiction
  • 10:30 AM – 11:30 AM
  • Description: Recovery within intimate partnerships presents unique challenges, as attachment styles, communication patterns, power dynamics, and cultural and gendered expectations can either support or undermine recovery efforts.

• Addiction Within the Neurodivergent Community
  • 3:00 PM – 4:00 PM
  • Description: Addiction remains a critical focus of psychological and behavioral research, with increasing attention to cognitive and developmental risk factors. This study examined the relationship between learning disabilities and multiple forms of addiction, including video games, shopping, social media, food, marijuana, nicotine vaping, alcohol, and sexual behavior.

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