The Complexity of Maternal Depression and its Effects on Young Children: Looking Back over the Last 50 years

This paper briefly reviews major trends in the maternal depression research over the past 50 years. For the purpose of the review, maternal depression is defined as the period during pregnancy and postbirth associated with experiencing depressive symptoms that impair daily functioning. Adverse effects associated with maternal depression are discussed in terms of impacting the health and cognitive abilities of the mother as well as the development of the fetus and child. Behavioral research from the 1970s-1990s is reviewed on infants' facial responses to depressed caregivers versus familiar non-depressed adults. The development and refinement of physiological measures during the 1970s and 1980s, such as respiratory sinus arrhythmia and vagal tone, are also included in the review. This is followed by research suggesting mother-child matching of electroencephalography (EEG) patterns, with different brain wave patterns for mother-child dyads in relation to maternal depression symptoms. The focus from the 1990s through the first decade of the millennium on elevated cortisol is discussed as a potential mechanism underlying the development of maternal depression. The review ends with expectations that new mechanisms and hypotheses will be generated as new technology that allows for fetal measures and study of other maternal hormones continues to explore the complex disorder associated with pregnancy and postpartum depression.