Social support and avoidant coping: correlates of depressed mood during pregnancy in minority women

The purpose of this study was to evaluate several psychosocial correlates of depressed mood during pregnancy. The psychosocial factors examined included background characteristics (socioeconomic status, planning of pregnancy), perceived social support, and coping styles.

One hundred fifty pregnant lower income, minority women were recruited from an obstetrics clinic at an urban hospital. Patients completed a battery of psychosocial measures including measures of social support, coping style, and depressed mood.

Perceived social support and an avoidant coping style were the most salient psychosocial correlates of depressed mood during pregnancy, accounting for 34% of the variance in the model. More specifically, women who reported less social support satisfaction experienced greater avoidant coping strategies, which was then associated with higher levels of depressed mood.

This study suggests that women who perceive less social support satisfaction utilize more avoidant coping strategies and experience greater depression mood. Thus, although these associations are not indicative of a causal relationship, results raise the possibility that women at-risk for depressed mood during pregnancy can be identified by assessing perceived social support and coping styles. Future prospective studies are needed to test the causal relationships among these variables. Clinical interventions to target these psychosocial factors during pregnancy are discussed.