A longitudinal study of the psychological impact of child-rearing difficulty and COVID-19 on mothers in the postpartum period in Japan

Background: Postpartum mothers may experience psychological stress due to the sudden changes in their bodies and situation. This study investigates the changes in depressive symptoms among nursing mothers and their child-rearing difficulties before and one month after the declared state of emergency due to COVID-19 pandemic in Japan. The study also assesses whether adding the stress induced by the pandemic to parenting difficulties affected women's depressive symptoms. Method: An online survey was conducted with 309 postpartum women. Participants completed questionnaires that included the Quick Inventory of Depressive Symptomatology (QIDS-SR-J), draft version of the Comprehensive Scale for Parenting Resilience and Adaptation (CPRA+α), and original questions about the COVID-19 stress. Results: A factor analysis was performed on CPRA+α, which found five main factors: difficulty in coping with child and oneself, dissatisfaction with husband, distrust in parents, being tired of the child, and distrust in physician. As a result of t-test of these five factors and the QIDS revealed that there was a significant difference in depressive symptoms before and after the COVID-19 outbreak. In addition to these five factors, the COVID-19 stress of impact on income and employment increased depressive symptoms, while the stress of refraining from going out decreased depressive symptoms. Limitation: Differences in the characteristics of children and mothers were not considered in the study. Longitudinal studies focusing on the period after the declaration of a state of emergency in 2020 are considered necessary. Conclusion: Childcare difficulties and the COVID-19 pandemic induced stress are associated with postpartum women's depressive symptoms

シュウサンキ ノ オヤ ヲ ササエル ドゥーラ ノ ヤクワリ リンショウ シンリガク テキ シテン カラ

研究ノー

スウェーデン イリョウ キカン ニ オケル シュウサンキ ソウシツ ケア ヘ ノ タショクシュ レンケイ

翻

ホンヤク スンエ キム ナ ヤング ユリム リー カンコク ノ ダタイ キンシ ヘノ チョウセン デ リプロダクティブ ジャスティス ウンドウ ガ ハタシタ ヤクワリ

原著 / スンエ・キム（Sunhye Kim）, ナ・ヤング（Na Young）, ユリム・リー（Yurim Lee）翻訳 / 管生聖子, 塚原久