The Relationship Between Mindfulness and Depression Among University Students in Lebanon

Abstract

Mindfulness involves paying attention to one’s experience, nonjudgmentally, and in the present moment. Recently, mindfulness has been investigated as a treatment for depression. Being one of the largest contributors to non-fatal loss of health, depression has a prevalence rate of 4.4% worldwide (World Health Organization, 2017). This study examined the mechanisms involved in the relationship between mindfulness and depression, using cognitive processes that have been associated with depression (i.e., rumination, self-criticism, and general self-efficacy). We surveyed 217 undergraduate students enrolled in introductory to psychology classes at the American University of Beirut. The prevalence of depressive symptoms in our sample was approximately 38%. A hierarchical multiple regression analysis identified the mindfulness facets of describing, acting with awareness, and nonjudging as significant predictors of depression, along with reflection, self-criticism, and general self-efficacy, after controlling for gender, socioeconomic status, and meditative practice. A parallel multiple mediation analysis identified rumination, self-criticism, and general self-efficacy as significant mediators of the relationship between mindfulness and depression. The findings highlight the different processes that may play a key role in maintaining and exacerbating depression. Clinical and theoretical implications were discussed. Future studies can build on the current study’s limitations by using experimental or longitudinal designs in order to establish causal or temporal mediation associations.