The Examination of the Factors Related with Postpartum Depression and Parenting from Pregnancy Through One Year Postpartum

Abstract

　　Maltreatment or child abuse has been a social problem in Japan. Many politics have been introduced but not yet effective enough to prevent or investigate maltreatment. The relation between depression and parenting has long been discussed and risk factors of depression have been investigated. We want to find out when and which risk factor effects depression or maltreatment and make it clear when and what intervention is needed. This study has longitudinally evaluated the relationships between postnatal depression and maltreatment and related variables such as marital relationship, affection toward infants over the course of the first postpartum year. 522 mothers who admitted to join this survey have been received the questionnaire 5 times, pregnancy, 5 weeks, 3, 6, 12 months postpartum by mail. Depression and marital relationship decrease after birth, negative affection toward infants increased 3 months after birth. To examine the mutual relationships of factors along with time line, we used cross-lagged correlation analysis. It revealed that negative affection toward infants were significantly and interactively related to maltreatment. Depression and marital relationship were significantly related to negative affection toward infants and maltreatment. As a result of this survey, we submitted conceptual model and proposed the 2 point of view of intervention of maltreatment. One point was to prevention or treatment of mothers' depression and another was to improve or to enhance marital relationship.