Katherine M Schafer, Allison M Daurio, Thomas E Joiner
{"title":"Maternity Leave, Race, and Postpartum Depression: The Impact of Public Policy on Mothers Living in Poverty.","authors":"Katherine M Schafer, Allison M Daurio, Thomas E Joiner","doi":"10.1097/FCH.0000000000000441","DOIUrl":null,"url":null,"abstract":"<p><strong>Background: </strong>Some maternity leave practices are associated with postpartum depressive (PPD) symptoms which in turn are linked with increased risk of poor maternal and infant outcomes. Mothers of color disproportionately experience poor maternity leave policies and elevated PPD symptoms.</p><p><strong>Methods: </strong>This cross-sectional study employed data collected at baseline of the Baby's First Year study. Participants were 153 American mothers living below the poverty line. They were interviewed (2018-2019) in the days following birth regarding their race, maternity leave, and PPD symptoms.</p><p><strong>Results: </strong>Findings indicated that alone race and maternity leave practices were not associated with PPD symptoms. However, the interaction between the two accounted for significant variability in PPD symptoms. Black/African American mothers who reported that they used unpaid maternity leave (n=41, M=8.146, SD=0.708) and mothers in the \"Other\" race category who reported not taking maternity leave (n=7, M=8.857, SD=1.715) had higher than expected rates of PPD.</p><p><strong>Conclusion: </strong>These findings show that on the whole, poor maternity leave practices have a disproportionate impact on mothers of color. When women of color are exposed to either no maternity leave or unpaid maternity leave, they are at elevated risk of developing PPD.</p>","PeriodicalId":47183,"journal":{"name":"Family & Community Health","volume":" ","pages":"319-327"},"PeriodicalIF":1.3000,"publicationDate":"2025-10-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":"0","resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":null,"PeriodicalName":"Family & Community Health","FirstCategoryId":"3","ListUrlMain":"https://doi.org/10.1097/FCH.0000000000000441","RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"医学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":null,"EPubDate":"2025/8/12 0:00:00","PubModel":"Epub","JCR":"Q3","JCRName":"FAMILY STUDIES","Score":null,"Total":0}
引用次数: 0
Abstract
Background: Some maternity leave practices are associated with postpartum depressive (PPD) symptoms which in turn are linked with increased risk of poor maternal and infant outcomes. Mothers of color disproportionately experience poor maternity leave policies and elevated PPD symptoms.
Methods: This cross-sectional study employed data collected at baseline of the Baby's First Year study. Participants were 153 American mothers living below the poverty line. They were interviewed (2018-2019) in the days following birth regarding their race, maternity leave, and PPD symptoms.
Results: Findings indicated that alone race and maternity leave practices were not associated with PPD symptoms. However, the interaction between the two accounted for significant variability in PPD symptoms. Black/African American mothers who reported that they used unpaid maternity leave (n=41, M=8.146, SD=0.708) and mothers in the "Other" race category who reported not taking maternity leave (n=7, M=8.857, SD=1.715) had higher than expected rates of PPD.
Conclusion: These findings show that on the whole, poor maternity leave practices have a disproportionate impact on mothers of color. When women of color are exposed to either no maternity leave or unpaid maternity leave, they are at elevated risk of developing PPD.
期刊介绍:
Family & Community Health is a practical quarterly which presents creative, multidisciplinary perspectives and approaches for effective public and community health programs. Each issue focuses on a single timely topic and addresses issues of concern to a wide variety of population groups with diverse ethnic backgrounds, including children and the elderly, men and women, and rural and urban communities.