Low socioeconomic status, parental stress, depression, and the buffering role of network social capital in mothers

Abstract

Background

Pathways underlying the stress–depression relationship in mothers, and the factors that buffer this relationship are not well understood.

Aims

Drawing from the Stress Process model, this study examines (1) if parental stress mediates the association between socioeconomic characteristics and depressive symptoms, and (2) if social support and network capital moderate these pathways.

Method

Data came from 101 mothers from Montreal. Generalized structural equation models were conducted, with depressive symptoms (CES-D scores) as the outcome, socioeconomic stressors as independent variables, parental stress as the mediator, and social support and network social capital as moderators.

Results

Parental stress partially mediated the association between household income and depressive symptoms (indirect effect: β = −0.09, Bootstrap SE = 0.03, 95% CI = −0.15 to −0.03 p = 0.00). Network diversity moderated the relationship between parental stress and depressive symptoms (β = −0.25, 95% CI = −0.42 to −0.09, p = 0.00); at high levels of stress, mothers with high compared to low network diversity reported fewer symptoms.

Conclusion

Findings highlight the role that socioeconomic factors play in influencing women’s risk of depression and shaping the benefits that ensue from social resources. Addressing these factors requires interventions that target the social determinants of depression.

Keywords:

• Depression
• social capital
• parental stress
• stress process
• income
• socioeconomic status
• social support
• social network
• maternal health

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

This work was supported by Canadian Institutes of Health Research [191827], National Institutes of Health [10213], and Woco Foundation and Norlien Foundation.