Mexican Immigrant Fathers' Recognition of and Coping with Maternal Depression: The Influence of Meaning-Making on Marital and Co-Parenting Roles among Men Participating in a Family Intervention.

Abstract

Fathers play a critical role in recognizing and responding to maternal depression and providing support to the family during the mothers' illness and recovery. Our study adopted a dualmethod approach consisting initially of sample interviewing with 10 Mexican immigrant fathers, about their partner's depression and recovery, co-parenting, and fathers' coping. Fathers, their partners, and children participated in a family intervention to support the mother's recovery and address the needs of the family. Approximately 12 months from sample interviews and 8 months after the intervention, we conducted in-depth case studies with three of those fathers to explore how their recognition, support, and coping evolved. Results from interviews across time points present fathers' initial and evolving understanding of maternal depression, while a case study example reflects how fathers' recognition of their partners' depression changed, as did their marital and family interactions, as they shifted attribution of their partners' depression from a controllable state to one of illness. Receipt of accurate information about depression increased fathers' recognition of depression and allowed them to expand traditional gender norms to take an active role in supporting their partners and children. Fathers' experiences were not without emotional cost, with many men recounting anxiety, shame, loneliness, and helplessness. This study underscores the importance of including fathers in interventions and research on maternal depression in immigrant families, and it offers recommendations for culturally grounded familyfocused, interventions.