Exploring the Relationship Between Depression and Resilience in Survivors of Childhood Trauma

Although experiences of trauma are common, reactions vary due to a host of biopsychosocial and cultural factors that influence the individual reaction to the trauma (Nakai et al., 2015). One such factor is resiliency, the capability to adapt in adverse environmental circumstances (Basim & Cetin, 2011). This study used hierarchical multiple regression to examine the relationships between childhood trauma, recent experiences of depression, and resilience in adult university students. This study also examined the possible moderating effects on depression by resilience. Participants completed the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, Connor-Davidson Resilience scale, and PROMIS Depression survey. Small significant relationships were found for several of the variables, including: childhood trauma and ethnicity, childhood trauma and age, childhood trauma and income, childhood trauma and education, childhood trauma and resilience, childhood trauma and depression, depression and ethnicity, depression and education, depression and income, resilience and gender, resilience and income, and resilience and trauma. The results of this study also suggest resilience has a moderate inverse relationship with depression. The data also confirmed the existing literature which noted that adults who have experienced trauma in childhood have significantly higher rates of depression in adulthood than adults who have not experienced trauma