Bidirectional associations between maternal and paternal depressive symptoms across the postpartum period: Contributions of maternal prenatal depression and childhood neglect.

Postpartum depression (PPD) is a major public health problem. Although maternal PPD has received more attention, less is known about paternal PPD and how parents' depressive symptoms influence one another over time. The present study investigated longitudinal patterns of maternal and paternal depressive symptoms during the first 18 months postpartum using a random intercept cross-lagged panel model in 119 mothers (Mage = 31.15, 89% White, 93% non-Hispanic, 91% married) and fathers (Mage = 32.74), while also considering the role of maternal prenatal depression and maternal childhood neglect. Results indicated strong autoregressive stability for maternal depressive symptoms across all time points (β = 0.24-0.61), whereas paternal symptoms showed less consistency, with stability emerging later. Our results revealed a bidirectional effect, where maternal symptoms at 1 month (β = 0.35) predicted paternal symptoms at 6 months (β = 0.26), which in turn predicted maternal symptoms at 12 months (β = 0.28). Additionally maternal emotional (β = 0.33) and physical neglect (β = 0.18) were associated with higher maternal depressive symptoms during pregnancy, and emotional neglect (β = 0.35), uniquely predicted higher maternal depressive symptoms at 1 month postpartum. These findings highlight the interconnected nature of parental depressive symptoms and the lasting impact of maternal neglect on early postpartum mental health.