Optimism and resilience, as moderated by coping style, on prenatal depressive symptomology and salivary cortisol response to stress

Depression and abnormal salivary cortisol levels have been related to poor health outcomes for both mothers and their children. However, few studies have examined whether protective factors, such as optimism, resilience, or coping styles are associated with depression and cortisol during pregnancy. The current study examined whether these protective factors were associated with depressive symptomology (current and lifetime depression) and salivary cortisol patterns among 100 low-income pregnant women. Hierarchical regression analyses found that: (a) greater levels of optimism and resilience were associated with lower levels of depression (R2 = .17 to .46, p < .05); (b) women low in resilience reported more depressive symptoms when using more positive reinterpretation coping (R2 = .36, p < .05); and (c) women high in resilience reported more depressive symptoms when using more avoidance coping (R2 = .20, p < .05). Results suggest that coping processes may be important in understanding the mental and physical experience of depression.