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ORIGINAL RESEARCH article

Front. Psychiatry

Sec. Perinatal Psychiatry

Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1514249

Examining the Relationship Between Perceived Social Support and Prenatal Distress in Pregnant Women

Provisionally accepted
Somayeh  Abdollahi SabetSomayeh Abdollahi SabetSamira  AhmadiSamira Ahmadi*Zahra  PakianZahra PakianAzam  - MalekiAzam - Maleki*
  • Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Health and Metabolic Diseases Research Institute, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran, Zanjan, Iran

The final, formatted version of the article will be published soon.

Background: Understanding the link between perceived social support and prenatal distress is vital for improving maternal mental health during pregnancy. Objective: To examine the relationship between perceived social support and prenatal distress among pregnant women. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted on 220 pregnant women at Ayatollah Mousavi Hospital in Zanjan City in 2023. Participants were selected through a convenience sampling method, and data were collected using the Prenatal Distress and social support questionnaires. The analysis involved Spearman's rank correlation, the Mann–Whitney U test, the Kruskal–Wallis test, and backward conditional logistic regression with median cut-off points, all at a 95% confidence level. Results: The average perinatal distress score was 39.38 (SD = 6.04), and the average social support score was 45.66 (SD=10.91). Total social support was negatively correlated with overall prenatal distress (r = -0.355), childbirth and the baby-related distress (r =-0.472), and emotional/relational issues(r = -0.119), but not with body image-related distress (r = 0.090, p = 0.35). Younger, higher-educated women with more children reported lower distress. Additionally, women aged 18-25, with more children, low income, who were housewives, or had a gestational age of 29-42 weeks, had higher social support scores (p < 0.01). Conclusion: Both perinatal distress and perceived social support were observed at moderate levels among the study population. Parity emerged as the only independent predictor for both prenatal distress and social support, with primiparous women exhibiting higher distress levels, while multiparous women reported higher perceived social support. These findings underscore the importance of developing tailored interventions that address the distinct needs of women according to their parity status.

Keywords: social support, psychological distress, Perinatal Care, Women's Health, prenatal distress

Received: 20 Oct 2024; Accepted: 05 Sep 2025.

Copyright: © 2025 Sabet, Ahmadi, Pakian and Maleki. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.

* Correspondence:
Samira Ahmadi, Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Health and Metabolic Diseases Research Institute, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran, Zanjan, Iran
Azam - Maleki, Social Determinants of Health Research Center, Health and Metabolic Diseases Research Institute, Zanjan University of Medical Sciences, Zanjan, Iran, Zanjan, Iran

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