The DOI matches its Crossref record; 86 of the 89 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
Social support, stress, and maternal postpartum depression: A comparison of supportive relationships
Abstract
A large body of literature documents the link between social support, stress, and women's mental health during pregnancy and the postpartum period; however, uncertainty remains as to whether a direct effect or stress mediating pathway best describes the relationship between these factors. Moreover, specific dimensions of social support that may be influential (family type, sources of support) have largely been neglected. Using data from the Fragile Families and Child Well-being Study (N=4150), we examine the pathway between social support, stress exposure, and postpartum depression in greater detail. Findings reveal that social support is a significant, protective factor for postpartum depression, and the variety of support providers in a woman's social network is important, especially in the context of family type. Findings also reveal the importance of considering social support and stress exposure as part of a larger causal pathway to postpartum mental health.
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“Notably, even the mere perception of support improves health and well-being by reducing stress levels (25, 26).”
In the citing paper
“The role of spousal support in mitigating postpartum depression is significant [38, 46–48].”
From Understanding mothers’ lived experiences of postpartum depression: a qualitative phenomenological study (2025) · cites this paper as [46]
Citations
Cites
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A comparison of methods to test mediation and other intervening variable effects
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“The idea that social support has stress mediating effects is generally consistent with the stress process framework of mental health (see Pearlin et al., 1981 for a detailed overview).”
BackgroundMethodResultInfluentialMechanisms Linking Social Ties and Support to Physical and Mental Health
Thoits, P. A. (2011) · Journal of Health and Social Behavior · doi:10.1177/0022146510395592 · Cited by 4,076
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Research works printed but not linked: 1
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Cited by
Sorted by citations
Elevated depression and anxiety symptoms among pregnant individuals during the COVID-19 pandemic
Lebel, C., MacKinnon, A., Bagshawe, M., Tomfohr-Madsen, L., & Giesbrecht, G. (2020) · Journal of Affective Disorders · doi:10.1016/j.jad.2020.07.126 · Cited by 1,017
Women’s experiences of social support during pregnancy: a qualitative systematic review
Al-Mutawtah, M., Campbell, E. R., Kubis, H., & Erjavec, M. (2023) · BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth · doi:10.1186/s12884-023-06089-0 · Cited by 169
Social Support: Multidisciplinary Review, Synthesis, and Future Agenda
Bavik, Y. L., Shaw, J. D., & Wang, X.-H. F. (2020) · Academy of Management Annals · doi:10.5465/annals.2016.0148 · Cited by 163
Corder, K. L., Winpenny, E. M., Foubister, C., Guagliano, J. M., Hartwig, X. M., Love, R., Astbury, C. C., & van Sluijs, E. M. F. (2020) · Obesity Reviews · doi:10.1111/obr.12959 · Cited by 145
van Heyningen, T., Honikman, S., Myer, L., Onah, M. N., Field, S., & Tomlinson, M. (2017) · Archives of Women s Mental Health · doi:10.1007/s00737-017-0768-z · Cited by 139
Metadata
- Authors
- Reid, K. M., & Taylor, M. G.
- Affiliations
- Florida State University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Reid, Keshia M.
- Venue
- Social Science Research
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2015-11
- Volume
- 54
- Pages
- 246-262
- ISSN
- 0049-089X (ISSN-L)
- OpenAlex
- W1453590337
- Cited by
- 291
- References
- 89
- Citations by year
- 2026: 20 · 2025: 29 · 2024: 32 · 2023: 31 · 2022: 58 · 2021: 36 · 2020: 37 · 2019: 12 · 2018: 19 · 2017: 11 · 2016: 4 · 2015: 1
- FWCI
- 12.51
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Social Science Research (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (R01HD36916, R01HD39135, R01HD40421)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Obstetrics and Gynecology › Maternal and Perinatal Health Interventions
- Keywords
- social support, stress exposure, postpartum depression, maternal mental health, family structure, sources of support, social networks, mediation, Fragile Families and Child Wellbeing Study, single mothers
- MeSH terms
- Maternal Health, Adolescent, Adult, Child, Preschool, Family, Female, Humans, Infant, Mental Health, Mothers, Surveys and Questionnaires, Social Support, Stress, Psychological, Women's Health, Depression, Postpartum, Postpartum Period, Young Adult
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