본문 바로가기
  • Home

Mental Health of Mothers and Their Infant Depending on Degree of Mothers' Pre- and Post-natal Depression

  • THE KOREAN JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY
  • 2012, 25(3), pp.125-148
  • Publisher : The Korean Society For Developmental Psychology
  • Research Area : Social Science > Psychological Science

최인애 1 Lee, Kyung Sook 1 YEE-JIN SHIN 2 Park Jinah 3

1한신대학교
2연세대학교
3세원영유아아동상담센터

Accredited

ABSTRACT

This study is a longitudinal investigation on the mental health of mothers and their infants depending on the degree of mothers' pre- and pos-tnatal depression for one year. The subjects were 467 mothers who were selected for the Childhood Asthma and Allergic Diseases Cohort Study (COCOA) in progress in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Department of four general hospitals in Seoul. The subjects were divided into four groups depending on the degree of their pre- and post-natal depression, and mental health of the mothers and their children was compared. Results are as follows:. First, 73mothers experienced prenatal depression (15.63%) and the incidence of postnatal depression was 82 out of 467 mothers (17.56%). Second, a significant difference (p < .01) was found between the groups in terms of prenatal(in the 36th weeks of pregnancy) anxiety. The group with the highest prenatal and postnatal depression experienced the highest prenatal anxiety, and the degree of satisfaction with life as measured during the sixth month of pregnancy was the highest in the group with the lowest levels of pre and postnatal depression. A significant difference in parenting stress was found between the groups, with; the group with higher prenatal and postnatal depression experiencing higher parenting stress. Third, no significant difference was found between the groups in terms of mental health(anxiety, marital satisfaction, and satisfaction with life) of mothers with 12-month-old children. However, a significant difference was found in terms of parenting stress. Fourth, the only instance in which a significant correlation(P < .05) was found between infants' mental health and degree of maternal depression, was in fine motor skills among 6-month-old infants. This study is the first longitudinal research in Korea that examines mental health of mothers and their infants by degree of mothers' pre and postnatal depression for one year. The clinical significance and the need for intervention in instances of postpartum depression, as well as suggestions for future research, were also discussed.

Citation status

* References for papers published after 2023 are currently being built.