Interpersonal Trauma Exposure and Depression in Young Adults: Considering the Role of World Assumptions

Abstract

The transition to young adulthood confers heightened risk for depression, and exposure to interpersonal trauma (IPT) can magnify this risk. However, not all IPT-exposed young adults develop depressive symptoms, and not all young adults with depressive symptoms report past IPT, suggesting a need to identify moderators of the IPT–depression link. This study investigated whether four different world assumptions—core beliefs about the nature of the world—moderated the association between IPT exposure and depressive symptoms in college students ( N = 1,084, M age = 19.5, 74.1% female). Participants self-reported IPT exposure, depressive symptoms, and world assumptions via an online survey. We predicted that the IPT–depressive symptom association would be weaker among young adults with more positive assumptions about the safety of the world, trustworthiness of people, predictability of people, and controllability of events, versus those with more negative world assumptions in these domains. Hierarchical regression results supported this prediction with respect to one world assumption type: more positive beliefs about the world’s safety significantly attenuated the relation between past IPT exposure and present depressive symptoms, Δ F(1, 1061) = 9.54, Δ R2 = 0.01, p = .002. The IPT–depressive symptom link was over 3 times as strong for young adults with weak “world-is-safe” assumptions, versus those with strong “world-is-safe” assumptions. No other world assumption types emerged as moderators. Lay theories of the world’s safety may represent a basic, survival-oriented belief with implications for depressive symptoms following safety threats, such as IPT. Addressing “world-is-safe” assumptions may enhance depression prevention efforts for IPT-exposed young adults.