Investigating depression among college faculty through the lens of the 3P model of disease

The present study uses the 3P model of disease to evaluate the predisposing , precipitating , and perpetuating factors that predicted depression scores for college faculty early in the COVID-19 pandemic. Tenure stream faculty ( n = 193) from three small liberal arts colleges in the Northeastern United States participated between May and September 2020. On average, participants reported “mild” depression, with more than half scoring above “normal” on the depression subscale of the Depression, Anxiety, and Stress Scale-21 (DASS-21). A hierarchical linear regression revealed that predisposing factors associated with depression (e.g., gender) did not significantly predict depression scores. Precipitating factors related to the onset of the pandemic including change in satisfaction with work-life balance, having sufficient time for teaching, and teaching during spring 2020, did predict depression outcomes. So did the perpetuating factor of sleep disturbance. Insights from this study may be useful for depression prevention, mitigation, and treatment for college faculty.