Detrimental effects of kin support networks on the course of depression

On the basis of preliminary findings that, for recovered depressed patients, a good family support network is associated with a subsequent increase in depressive symptoms, a prospective study is presented which examines the specific conditions under which this counterintuitive effect is present. A sample of 168 depressed psychiatric inpatients was assessed 1 and 7 months after discharge from hospital regarding, among other variables, depressive symptomatology, diagnostic status, and the composition and supportive functions of their social networks. The detrimental effect was restricted to female patients who were recovered at discharge and who were homemakers, and it involved supportive relatives, in particular relatives providing close psychological and emotional support in crises. Possible psychological and psychosocial mediators as well as implications for research and intervention are discussed.