Locus of control and prenatal depression.

Area of Science:

• Reproductive Health
• Psychology
• Maternal-Fetal Medicine

Background:

• Prenatal depression poses risks to both maternal postpartum mental health and fetal development.
• Locus of control is a psychological construct that may influence the onset of prenatal depression.

Purpose of the Study:

• To investigate locus of control as a predictor of prenatal depression among rural pregnant women.
• To identify specific dimensions of locus of control that are associated with prenatal depressive symptoms.

Main Methods:

• A study involving 133 rural pregnant women recruited from obstetrician offices.
• Utilized the Levenson Scale on Locus of Control and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale for data collection.
• Employed multiple regression analysis to assess the predictive power of locus of control on depression scores.

Main Results:

• External Locus of Control-Chance Scale emerged as a significant predictor.
• This dimension accounted for 17% of the variance in prenatal depression scores, even after controlling for mental health history.
• Other dimensions of locus of control did not show significant predictive value.

Conclusions:

• A belief in external chance factors is associated with higher rates of prenatal depression in this population.
• Targeting interventions to address external locus of control beliefs may be beneficial for preventing prenatal depression.
• Findings highlight the importance of psychological factors in maternal mental health during pregnancy.