Discrimination, acculturation and other predictors of depression among pregnant Hispanic women

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of our study was to examine the effects of socioeconomic status, acculturative stress, discrimination, and marginalization as predictors of depression in pregnant Hispanic women.

Design: A prospective observational design was used.

Setting: Central and Gulf coast areas of Texas in obstetrical offices.

Participants: A convenience sample of 515 pregnant, low income, low medical risk, and self-identified Hispanic women who were between 22-24 weeks gestation was used to collect data.

Measures: The predictor variables were socioeconomic status, discrimination, acculturative stress, and marginalization. The outcome variable was depression.

Results: Education, frequency of discrimination, age, and Anglo marginality were significant predictors of depressive symptoms in a linear regression model, F (6, 458) = 8.36, P<.0001. Greater frequency of discrimination was the strongest positive predictor of increased depressive symptoms.

Conclusions: It is important that health care providers further understand the impact that age and experiences of discrimination throughout the life course have on depressive symptoms during pregnancy.

Fig. 1

BDI is values are the logged value of the participants’ total BDI score. Education values are the number of years of education the participants had completed.