Introduction: Drug dependents’offspring are at a higher risk of substance dependency . The study aims at investigating some factors that protect this population from being substance dependent.

Methods: Male clients of drug treatment centers whose fathers were either drug dependent or non-dependent, along with their non-dependent brothers participated in the study. Checklists designed to gather information on demographic and resiliency factors were filled out for all four groups. These factors were education, friends networks, parental control , and attachment with a confiding adult.

Results: In drug dependent fathers group, staying nights out of home unitl late without parental permission and staying nights out of home until late for more than one night with parental permission were found in drug dependents significanlly more than non- dependents. Crude number of non-dependent intimate friends in workplace, the ratio of this number to the whole number of all close friends in workplace, staying nights out of home until late with and without parental permission, and staying nights out of home until late for more than one night without parental permission, were found in drug dependent persons significantly less, in first three variables and more in the last variable than drug non-dependent persons with non-dependent father, respectively.

Conclusion: Parental control in both groups with drug dependent and non-dependent fathers and staying less than a night out of home with parental permission and drug- free close relations in the group who had non-dependent fathers, have a role in protecting them from drug dependency

 Hakim Research Journal  2005 8(2) 31-36.