The Association between Social Support, Stress Exposure and Postpartum Depression: A Stress Process Approach

Keshia Reid, Florida State University

The role of stress and social support in women’s health during pregnancy and the postpartum period has gained considerable attention in the examination of postpartum depression (PPD). However, this literature has generally failed to account for the type and timing of stressors and often assumes that social support directly impacts a woman’s risk for PPD, when it may in fact act as a mediator, governing the effects of stressors. Using in-person interviews and medical record data from the Fragile Families and Child Well-being Study (N= 2,123), I draw on the stress process framework to test the mediating effects of social support on the link between stress exposure and postpartum depression. Preliminary findings suggest that instrumental support perceived to be available from a woman’s family and friends is most significant in reducing the impact of stress. Findings also appear to vary by the partnership status of women.