The Mediating Role of Meaning in Life in the Relationship Between Psychological Resilience and Post-Traumatic Stress Symptoms in Healthcare Workers During COVID-19 Pandemic

Background: The current outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic has distorted the physical, mental, and psychological condition of healthcare workers. There is a paucity of research exploring the relationship between psychological resilience and post-traumatic stress symptoms and no existing literature examining the mediating role of meaning in life in the relationship between these two constructs. The objective of the study was to examine if meaning in life mediates the relationship between psychological resilience and post-traumatic stress symptoms. Methods: The research design was descriptive – correlational. A total of 337 healthcare workers during the COVID-19 pandemic in public hospitals in Tehran, Iran were selected using convenience sampling method. The self-administered questionnaire included demographic information, the Connor-Davidson Resilience Scale (CD-RISC), the Meaning in Life Questionnaire (MLQ), and the Impact of Event Scale- Revised (IES-R). Structural Equation Model (SEM) was employed to test whether the proposed relationships between variables involved existed. Results: The results showed that psychological resilience (β= -0.09, P<0.05) and meaning in life (β= -0.41, P<0.01) exert significant and negative direct effect on post-traumatic stress symptoms. The SEM analysis confirmed the mediating role of meaning in life in the relationship psychological resilience and post-traumatic stress symptoms was significant (β= -0.15, P<0.01). Conclusion: The research concluded that psychological resilience and meaning in life of healthcare workers affected their psychological conditions. Efforts to reduce post-traumatic stress symptoms among healthcare workers may benefit from practices for promoting psychological resilience and meaning in life.