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Updated: May 8, 2026
06:39
Using a Murine Model of Psychosocial Stress in Pregnancy as a Translationally Relevant Paradigm for Psychiatric Disorders in Mothers and Infants
Published on: June 13, 2021
Developmental inter-relations between early maternal depression, contextual risks, and interpersonal stress, and
Sarah K G Jensen1, Iroise Dumontheil, Edward D Barker
1Department of Psychology, Institute of Psychiatry, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom.
Depression and Anxiety
|September 13, 2013
Summary
Maternal depression and poverty increase household stress, negatively impacting child cognitive and social development. This study highlights how interpersonal stress mediates these effects on children.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Child Psychiatry
- Social Epidemiology
Background:
- Maternal depression and contextual risks like poverty are established factors affecting child development.
- The interplay between maternal mental health, socioeconomic factors, and interpersonal stress on child outcomes requires further investigation.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the developmental inter-relationships between maternal depression, contextual risks, and interpersonal stress.
- To understand how these factors collectively influence children's cognitive and social functioning.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from 6979 mother-child pairs in the Avon Longitudinal Study of Parents.
- Assessed maternal depression, contextual risks, and interpersonal stress from pregnancy to 33 months postpartum.
- Evaluated child cognitive and social cognitive skills at age 8.
Main Results:
- Demonstrated strong continuity and developmental inter-relatedness among maternal depression, contextual risks, and interpersonal stress.
- Found direct predictions from maternal depression and contextual risks to child executive functions and social cognition.
- Identified interpersonal stress as an indirect pathway negatively affecting child outcomes via maternal depression and contextual risks.
Conclusions:
- Maternal depression and contextual risks independently elevate household interpersonal stress.
- Increased interpersonal stress mediates the negative impact on children's cognitive and social functioning.
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