The Meaning in Life as a Protective Factor Against Depression During the COVID-19 Pandemic: A Multidimensional Perspective

The COVID-19 pandemic resulted in an increase in anxiety and depression disorders. Meaning in life was shown to be a protective factor against depression and anxiety during the pandemic. However, to the date, all studies were carried out from a unidimensional perspective, without taking into account the differential role of the three dimensions of meaning in life: Coherence, purpose and importance. The objectives of the study are a) to analyze whether the global meaning violation is associated with depression; b) analyze whether the global meaning violation is associated with meaning in life, and c) analyze which of the dimensions of meaning in life (compression, purpose, importance) has the greatest protective value in the relationship between the global meaning violation and the depression. The sample was made up of 355 participants and the following questionnaires were used: BSI-18, MEMS, GMVS and PIL-10. Moderation analyzes were performed. The results indicate that: global meaning violation is positively associated with depression; global meaning violation are low and negatively associated with meaning in life; We found that purpose (50%), coherence (49.61%) and importance (47%) had a buffering role between the global meaning violation and depression. In conclusion, meaning in life and its dimensions buffer the impact of depressive symptoms during the COVID-19 pandemic.