Positive Psychology and Depression Prevention: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Recent Decade Studies

Depression is one of the leading global mental health challenges, imposing substantial personal, social, and economic burdens. Over the past decade, positive psychology has emerged as a promising preventive framework that focuses on strengthening protective psychological resources such as positive emotions, meaning in life, hope, resilience, and character strengths rather than emphasizing pathology. With the rapid growth of positive psychology interventions (PPIs) and the variability of their reported outcomes, a comprehensive synthesis of evidence is needed to evaluate their effectiveness in preventing depressive symptoms across different populations and cultural contexts. This study aimed to conduct a systematic review and meta-analysis of empirical research published between ۲۰۱۴ and ۲۰۲۴ examining the preventive effects of PPIs on depressive symptoms in at-risk or non-clinical populations. A systematic search was performed across major international and Persian scientific databases. Based on predefined inclusion and exclusion criteria, ۱۱ studies were included in the qualitative synthesis, and ۱۰ studies that reported sufficient quantitative data were subjected to meta- analytic procedures. Standardized mean differences (SMDs) were computed using a random- effects model. Moderator analyses were conducted to examine the roles of intervention type, cultural context, age group, delivery format, and intervention duration. The meta-analysis revealed a significant small-to-moderate preventive effect of PPIs on depressive symptoms (SMD=-۰.۳۸). Multi-component interventions produced the strongest effects (SMD = -۰.۵۱), followed by meaning-centered and hope-based interventions. Iranian studies demonstrated slightly larger effect sizes compared to international studies, and adolescents and university students benefited more strongly than older adults. Interventions lasting ۶ to ۸ weeks and delivered in group formats showed the highest levels of effectiveness. Overall, the findings indicate that PPIs are effective, adaptable, and culturally flexible tools for reducing vulnerability to depression. The results underscore the importance of designing multi- component, developmentally sensitive, and culturally tailored PPIs, implementing school- based programs, and conducting long-term follow-up assessments. PPIs hold significant potential for future mental health prevention strategies.

کلیدواژه ها:

Positive psychology interventions ، depression prevention ، resilience ، meaning in life ، meta-analysis