Investigation of the Associations between Posttraumatic Growth, Sleep Quality and Depression Symptoms in Syrian Refugees

INTRODUCTION: Multiple traumatic events that refugees experience have different impact on psychological dimensions from deficiency to growth. The aim of the study was to investigate the associations between sleep quality, depression and post-traumatic growth in Syrian refugees.
METHODS: Seventy two Syrian refugees attending to psychiatric outpatient clinic participated in this cross-sectional study. Participants were evaluated with Beck Depression Inventory (BDI), Post-Traumatic Growth Inventory (PTGI) and Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI) via clinical interviews.
RESULTS: All participants reported in various degrees of posttraumatic growth and the mean total PTGI score was 62.30 (SD: 18.25). Exposure to multiple traumas was common (Mean: 4.33, SD: 2.29). There were no significant differences on BDI, PSQI and PTGI scores between genderes. All of PTGI subdomain scores were negatively associated with BDI scores, with larger effect sizes with personal strength (R2: 0.18) and appreciation of life (R2: 0.16). Having no past psychiatric disorder history was significantly associated with PTGI (β = 29.1, p = 0.02). In the path model to predict depression symptom severity in a single model, posttraumatic growth was associated with less severe depression symptoms, and sleep quality mediated the association between depression symptom severity and trauma exposure
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Syrian refugees in outpatient clinics reported depressive symptomatology and posttraumatic growth after exposure to multiple traumatic events. Results suggest that posttraumatic growth and better sleep quality in refugee populations may index better outcomes of psychological distress.