The Relationship Between Mental Health and Resilience: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

Context: Considering the stressful conditions of life and social difficulties, an important question is why are some people can show positive adaptation and avoid mental health disorders, while others cannot? The present study aimed at reviewing the national studies on the correlation between resilience and mental health. Evidence Acquisition: In this systematic review, all national articles published in international and national databases were searched without restrictions, using the following keywords: "Resilience OR Resiliency" AND "Mental health" OR "General Health" and their combinations. The Persian equivalents of these words were also used in Persian language sites. Finally, based on PRISMA guidelines, 15 studies were selected. The results of these studies were combined using the random effects model of meta-analysis. Results: In the present research, 16 correlation studies were examined without time limits, and with a sample size of 3157. Overall, a positive correlation was found between resilience and mental health in the national studies (r = 0.48). The results showed that the correlation between resilience and mental health was lower in the population of school and university students than among other populations (r = 0.39, compared to r = 0.54). The analysis based on geographical division indicated that the highest correlation between resilience and mental health existed in the fifth area (r = 0.83), and the lowest correlation was found in the fourth area (r = 0.35). Conclusions: By providing cognitive, behavioral and emotional responses in stressful situations, resilience can maintain and improve mental health.