The birth of a preterm infant and the hospitalization in a neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) add extra functional and emotional demands to the typical transition to motherhood. Therefore, the prevalence of peripartum depression (PPD) among preterm mothers is especially high. As optimism was found to be a mediator of the association between social support and depression, the current study aimed to test this mediation in the population of NICU mothers. A sample of 128 Israeli mothers of 214 NICU hospitalized infants filled out self-report questionnaires regarding background variables, social support, optimism, and PPD symptoms. As hypothesized, optimism was found to partially mediate the association between social support and PPD symptoms among mother of preterm infants. The higher the perceived social support reported, the higher maternal optimism reported, and in turn, the lower PPD symptoms reported. In accordance with the Transactional Stress Theory, social support and optimism reflect maternal secondary appraisals that impact the way mothers of preterm infants cope with the challenging situation of a preterm birth and NICU hospitalization. Healthcare professionals should encourage preterm mothers' use of social support to increase optimism and reduce the risk of developing PPD.

中文翻译：

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乐观情绪在新生儿重症监护室住院早产儿母亲社会支持与围产期抑郁之间的中介作用

早产儿的出生和新生儿重症监护病房 (NICU) 的住院治疗为典型的母亲过渡增加了额外的功能和情感需求。因此，早产妈妈围产期抑郁症（PPD）的患病率尤其高。由于乐观被发现是社会支持和抑郁之间关联的中介，目前的研究旨在在新生儿重症监护病房母亲人群中测试这种中介。一份由 214 名 NICU 住院婴儿的 128 名以色列母亲组成的样本填写了关于背景变量、社会支持、乐观和 PPD 症状的自我报告问卷。正如假设的那样，乐观被发现在一定程度上调节了早产儿母亲的社会支持和 PPD 症状之间的关联。报告的感知社会支持越高，报告的产妇乐观程度越高，反过来，报告的 PPD 症状就越低。根据交易压力理论，社会支持和乐观反映了母亲的二级评估，影响了早产儿母亲应对早产和新生儿重症监护病房住院的挑战情况的方式。医疗保健专业人员应鼓励早产妈妈使用社会支持来增加乐观情绪并降低患 PPD 的风险。