Motherhood can bring joy and enrichment but may also be associated with stress leading to poor health outcomes and low life satisfaction. Young mothers are a group particularly at risk of adverse outcomes, including increased social, economic, and health disadvantage following early entry to motherhood. This article reports results from a mixed-method study examining variations in levels of social support reported by mothers. Cross-sectional analyses of survey data from the Longitudinal Study of Australian Children showed that young mothers (aged less than 25 years when their child was born) generally reported higher levels of social support, but poorer family relationships than older mothers. In-depth interviews with nine young mothers provided insights into how they perceived support under these circumstances. Our research shows that young mothers often experienced difficult childhoods and strained relationships with parents, but many reconnected with their mothers after pregnancy and saw them as important sources of support.

孕产可以带来快乐和充实，但也可能与压力有关，导致健康状况差和生活满意度低。年轻的母亲尤其容易遭受不良后果的影响，包括在早日成年后增加的社会，经济和健康不利因素。本文报告了一项混合方法研究的结果，该研究检查了母亲报告的社会支持水平的变化。来自澳大利亚儿童纵向研究的调查数据的横断面分析显示，年轻母亲（孩子出生时年龄小于25岁）通常报告的社会支持水平较高，但家庭关系却比年龄较大的母亲差。对九名年轻母亲的深入访谈提供了有关他们在这种情况下如何看待支持的见解。