Journal article
Intimate partner violence across pregnancy and the postpartum and the relationship to depression and perinatal wellbeing: findings from a pregnancy cohort study
Archive of Women's Mental Health
2024
Abstract
Purpose
To compare the prevalence of emotional and physical intimate partner violence (IPV) across pregnancy and the first year postpartum in those with and without clinical depression and assess the association between maternal childhood trauma, current stressful life events and depression and IPV over the perinatal period.
Methods
Data were obtained from 505 pregnant women from the Mercy Pregnancy and Emotional Wellbeing Study (MPEWS), a cohort study with data collected across pregnancy until 12 months postpartum. Maternal antenatal depression was measured using the Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV (SCID-IV) with repeat measurement of perinatal depressive symptoms using the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). Trauma was measured using the Childhood Trauma Questionnaire, and experiences of physical and emotional intimate partner violence using items in the Stressful Life Events Scale.
Results
Women experiencing IPV across the perinatal period were significantly more likely to score over 13 on the EPDS (p < .001) at each timepoint in pregnancy and the postpartum and physical IPV was associated with clinical depression. Further, a history of childhood trauma and current additional stressful life events were significantly associated with reporting current IPV in the perinatal period.
Conclusions
This study confirmed the risk factors of childhood trauma and current stressful life events for reporting experiences of IPV in the perinatal period. Furthermore, women experiencing IPV reported higher depressive symptoms, providing evidence supporting the value of assessing those women who screen higher on the EPDS for IPV. Together these findings also support trauma informed care across pregnancy and the postpartum.
Details
- Title
- Intimate partner violence across pregnancy and the postpartum and the relationship to depression and perinatal wellbeing: findings from a pregnancy cohort study
- Authors/Creators
- Megan Galbally (Author) - Murdoch University, Centre for Computational and Systems MedicineStuart Watson (Author)Kelli MacMillan (Author)Katherine Sevar (Author) - Monash HealthLouise M Howard (Author) - King's College London
- Publication Details
- Archive of Women's Mental Health
- Publisher
- Springer Nature
- Identifiers
- 991005645169607891
- Copyright
- © Crown 2024
- Murdoch Affiliation
- Murdoch University
- Language
- English
- Resource Type
- Journal article
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Source: InCites
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- Collaboration types
- Domestic collaboration
- International collaboration
- Citation topics
- 6 Social Sciences
- 6.24 Psychiatry & Psychology
- 6.24.858 Intimate Partner Violence
- Web Of Science research areas
- Psychiatry
- ESI research areas
- Psychiatry/Psychology