Postpartum Depression Impacts Infants' Social Development Differentially Across Cultures

What is it about?

Postpartum depression adversely affects mother-infant interaction and infants’ social development. For example, having a depressed mother decrease infants’ tendency to share attention. However, this effect has only been documented in Western cultures. Therefore, this study investigated whether the impact of postpartum depression could be demonstrated in a broader (non-Western) cultural context. Our results suggest that this effect of postpartum depression is culture-sensitive. Infants in more interdependent cultures were not affected in the same way as we have observed in the West. Our leading hypothesis is that extended family structures and social networks mitigate the adverse effects of having a depressed mother.

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Photo by Igordoon Primus on Unsplash

Photo by Igordoon Primus on Unsplash

Why is it important?

This demonstrates how infants’ social and emotional contexts impact their development. But moreover, it indicates that the social and emotional context must be viewed in a broader cultural context to understand how it shapes development. This study exemplifies how a richer cultural perspective can bring critical insights to a phenomenon that, in turn, leads to a conceptual change. In this case, it suggests that infants in individualistic Western cultures might be more vulnerable to maternal mental health. However, it also suggests that much can be done. It seems possible that an active family context and sufficient maternal support positively impact infants’ environment, which can help mitigate adverse downstream effects of maternal postpartum depression and support infants’ development. Since postpartum depression is one of the most frequent complications following childbirth, understanding how it may affect infant development is very important. This study contributes novel insights to complement our current knowledge.

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