ORIGINAL RESEARCH article
Front. Public Health
Sec. Public Mental Health
This article is part of the Research TopicWomen’s Mental Health in the Post-COVID Era: Impacts and Future Strategies, vol IIView all articles
Inner Strengths as Buffers Against the Impact of Insecure Attachment on Depression Symptoms in Working Women
Provisionally accepted
- 1Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand
- 2Chiang Mai University Department of Psychiatry, Chiang Mai, Thailand
- 3The University of Queensland, Brisbane, Australia
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Background: Depression symptoms are often associated with insecure attachment. In China, working mothers are particularly vulnerable due to the intersecting pressures of work and familial responsibilities. Emerging evidence suggests that inner strength—including resilience, emotional regulation, and positive coping—may buffer the impact of insecure attachment on depressive symptoms in this population. Objective: The primary objective was to determine whether inner strengths moderate the relationship between insecure attachment and depression symptoms among Chinese working mothers. A secondary objective was to assess the prevalence of depression symptoms in this population, measured with the OI-Depression subscale (Outcome Inventory-21). Materials and methods: A cross-sectional survey was conducted with 330 Chinese working mothers aged 30 to 45 years. Participants completed validated measures: the Outcome Inventory for Depression, Experiences in Close Relationships, and the Inner Strength-Based Inventory. Moderation analysis was performed using the PROCESS macro, Model 1, to investigate whether inner strengths modified the relationship between insecure attachment and depressive symptoms. Results: Insecure attachment (B = 0.233, p < 0.001) and inner strengths (B = -0.295, p < 0.001) were both significantly associated with depressive symptoms. Notably, a significant moderation effect was observed (interaction B = -0.009, p < 0.001): higher levels of inner strengths were associated with a weaker positive relationship between insecure attachment and depressive symptoms. This study also found the prevalence was 38.2% for depression symptoms in this group based on the screening tools. Conclusion: Inner strengths significantly moderated the link between insecure attachment and depressive symptoms among Chinese working mothers. These findings highlight the protective potential of enhancing inner strengths in mental health interventions for this population. Further longitudinal research is recommended to confirm these effects and explore strategies to foster inner resilience.
Keywords: Mental Health1, depression2, insecure attachment3, inner strengths4, workingwomen5, China6
Received: 18 Jul 2025; Accepted: 14 Nov 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Jiao, Wongpakaran, Jenraumjit, Worland, Bunyachatakul and He. 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: Tinakon Wongpakaran, tinakon.w@cmu.ac.th
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