Influence of life events of pregnant women on depression: The mediating effects of anxiety and the moderating effects of social support

Objective: Explore the influence of life events of pregnant women on depression, with anxiety as a mediator and social support as moderates. Methods From January 2020 to December 2021, 1,767 valid data were collected through field questionnaires using convenient sampling method. The basic situation questionnaire, Maternal Life Events Scale (LESPW), Patient Health Questionnaire 9-item scale (PHQ-9), Generalized Anxiety Disorder 7-item scale (GAD-7) and Social Support Scale (SRSS) were used as the investigation tools. The survey objects were pregnant women who had established maternity records in a maternal and child health hospital in a certain area of China. The bias of common methods was evaluated by SPSS Harman single factor test. Maternal life events, anxiety, depression and social support levels were described by frequency and percentage, and Pearson correlation tests were used to measure correlations between variables. SPSS PROCESS macros (Model 4 and Model 8) were used to test the mediating and moderating effects of the model. Results Life events of pregnant women have a positive effect on depression, anxiety plays an intermediary role between life events of pregnant women and depression, social support and its dimension negatively regulate the relationship between life events of pregnant women and anxiety, social support to support use dimension regulates the relationship between life events of pregnant women and depression. Conclusion Maternal life events and anxiety are risk factors for depression, and social support is a protective factor for depression. Reducing life events and anxiety in pregnant women and enhancing social support can help reduce depression levels in pregnant women.