Longitudinal Study of Depressive Symptoms and Social Support in Adolescent Mothers

Abstract

Previous studies have suggested that adolescent mothers with higher social support have lower depressive symptoms. This is a longitudinal study of adolescent mothers to examine the association of social support and depressive symptoms over one year postpartum. This was a prospective study of adolescent mothers (N at baseline = 120, N at 1 year = 89; age \ 19 years) enrolled in a teen tot program. Participants completed the Center for Epidemiological Studies Depression Scale for children (CES-DC) and the Duke-UNC Functional Social Support Questionnaire at baseline, 12 weeks, and 1 year. A score of C 16 on the CES-DC was suggestive of major depression. The mean CES-DC scores of the adolescent mothers were C16 points at all three time points (baseline: mean = 18.7 ± 10.3; 53% C 16; 12 weeks: mean = 18.4 ± 11.4, 57% C 16; one year: mean = 20.0 ± 11.4; 57% C 16). Social support had a significant, inverse association with depressive symptoms for all participants from baseline to 12 weeks with a stronger association for those with more depressive symptoms (score C 16) at baseline (beta = -0.030 ± 0.007; P \ 0.001) than for those with fewer depressive symptoms (score \ 16) at baseline (beta = -0.013 ± 0.006; P = 0.021). From 12 weeks to one year, increased social support was only significantly associated with decreased depressive symptoms for those with a higher baseline level of depressive symptoms (beta = -0.039 ± 0.009; P \ 0.001). Depressive symptoms were prevalent among adolescent mothers. For more depressed adolescent mothers, higher levels of social support were associated with less depressive symptoms over the 1 year follow-up. Effective long-term interventions are needed to lessen depression and enhance social support.

Social Support, Postpartum Depression, and Professional Assistance: A Survey of Mothers in the Midwestern United States

“…The consensus among researchers is that an increased level of social support is associated with less PPD (Brown et al, 2012;Chien et al, 2012;R. C. Edwards et al, 2012;Shapiro & Fraser, 2013;Xie et al, 2009).…”

“…Support is paramount, and early recognition and treatment of PPD among disadvantaged populations in particular is an urgent health issue (Kim et al, 2012). Many studies have found that increased levels of support were associated with lower PPD scores (Brown, Harris, Woods, Burman, & Cox, 2012;Chien, Tai, & Yeh, 2012; R. C. Edwards et al, 2012;Fowles et al, 2012;Quelopana, Champion, & ReyesRubilar, 2011). In a longitudinal study of adolescent mothers in the United States (N 5 120 at baseline), Brown et al (2012) examined social support in relation to depressive symptoms over a 1-year postpartum period (N 5 89 at 1 year).…”

“…Many studies have found that increased levels of support were associated with lower PPD scores (Brown, Harris, Woods, Burman, & Cox, 2012;Chien, Tai, & Yeh, 2012; R. C. Edwards et al, 2012;Fowles et al, 2012;Quelopana, Champion, & ReyesRubilar, 2011). In a longitudinal study of adolescent mothers in the United States (N 5 120 at baseline), Brown et al (2012) examined social support in relation to depressive symptoms over a 1-year postpartum period (N 5 89 at 1 year). The authors reported that depressive symptoms were common among adolescent mothers, but that higher social support scores had a strong inverse association with depressive symptoms.…”

Teenage Pregnancy and Mental Health

“…Social support [28], specifically that involving the adolescent's mother and partner [14,29], has been linked to depression. This connection has stood up in both cross-sectional [29] and longitudinal research [14,28] and during periods of pregnancy [14,29] postpartum [14], and up to one year after birth [28].…”

Associations Between Lone Motherhood and Depression: A Co-twin Control Study

“…Women have been found to have an almost doubled risk of depression when compared to men (Atkins 2010), and lone mothers are three times more predisposed to poor health and depression than their married counterparts (Cairney et al 2004;Colton et al 2015). Age and race are correlates of this association, with younger women being more predisposed to depression than their older counterparts, (Brown et al 2012;Horwitz et al 2007), and lone mothers of color having a higher risk of depression than white mothers (Wang 2004). The number of children is an important predictor of maternal mental health, with more children corresponding with an increase in risk for depression (Horwitz et al 2007;Sperlich et al 2011b).…”