The Moderating Effect of Social Support on Parental Stress and Depression in Mothers of Children with Disabilities.
Gyeong-A Park, Oan Na Lee
PMID 35359427WHAT IT FOUND
Among 164 mothers of children with disabilities, higher parenting stress was linked to higher depression.
Mothers who felt more social support showed less depression at the same stress level. This is an association, not proof that adding support reduces depression.
Key findings
01Higher parental stress and lower perceived social support were both significantly associated with more depressive symptoms.
02Parental stress and social support together explained 63.0% of differences in depression scores.
03The stress-by-support interaction added 4.0% to the explained differences, and mothers with low support were more vulnerable as stress rose.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they found
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What it does not show
The study used a cross-sectional design, so it cannot show that social support reduces depression or that parenting stress causes depression. Participants were only mothers of children with disabilities in Gwangju and Jeollanamdo, South Korea, so the results may not apply to fathers, other regions, or other groups. The study measured only informal social support from family, friends, and community networks, not emotional, economic, informational, or instrumental support. The study did not examine whether parenting stress or depression differed by type of child disability.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that giving mothers more social support will reduce their depression. The study measured perceived support and depressive symptoms at one time, so it shows an association, not that support causes lower depression.