CLINICAL RESEARCHPostpartum Depression and Social Support in Adolescents
Section snippets
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to determine the impact of a social support intervention on the incidence of postpartum depression among adolescents who attend a teenage parent program.
Hypothesis
The hypothesis of the study predicts that the lowest rates of postpartum depression will be found among adolescents receiving both a written and videotaped social support intervention.
Method
A repeated measures design was used. Participants were students who attended an alternative public school for pregnant and parenting adolescents. The school serves approximately 700 students per year, with services including transportation, child care, health services (well child, family planning, prenatal care, and limited care for episodic illness), and minimal individual counseling by licensed clinical social workers.
Discussion
A social support intervention (pamphlet plus video) provided during late pregnancy to adolescents did not decrease their symptoms of depression at 6 weeks postpartum. The research hypothesis was not supported. These findings indicate that an isolated intervention in pregnancy to strengthen social support is not sufficient to prevent symptoms of postpartum depression.
The findings of this study are similar to those of other intervention studies for postpartum women that have failed to demonstrate
Acknowledgments
Funded by a joint research grant from the Midwest Nursing Research Society and Glaxo Wellcome Pharmaceutical Company and by a Research on Women Grant from the University of Louisville.
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