Depression in Lebanese adults : the predictive roles of cumulative trauma exposure and existential annihilation anxiety

Abstract

In the current Lebanese context, there are several identifiable stressors that are being imposed on the population that would raise the argument that the population is undergoing cumulative traumatization. The stressors in question include, but are not limited to, the COVID-19 pandemic, the August 4 explosion at the Beirut Port, the ongoing endemic recession and hyperinflation of the Lebanese pound, political tension, and collective human rights violations arising as a consequence of governmental negligence in response to these multiple crises. The current study follows a predictive model of depression as an outcome of cumulative trauma exposure, through the lens of Kira’s (2008) development-based trauma framework (DBTF). Existential annihilation anxiety (EAA) is also included as a predictor of depression in this model. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis revealed that cumulative trauma exposure and EAA were both significant predictors of depression. After including EAA in the regression model, it was found to be the most significant predictor. These results suggest that at the time of study, the experience of existential threat is at the core of depressive symptomatology in the context of cumulative trauma in the Lebanese population.