Maternal self-efficacy during infancy: Investigating the roles of depression and social support among mothers in rural Pakistan.

Maternal self-efficacy during infancy is shaped by many factors, including maternal mental health and social support. This study examines how depression, emotional support, and childcare support relate to maternal self-efficacy among mothers of infants in rural Pakistan. Participants included 885 mothers assessed at 3 and 6 months postpartum. At 3 months postpartum, mothers completed interview measures of depression, emotional social support, support with day-to-day childcare tasks (daily childcare support), and childcare support when they were unable to care for their child (childcare support when needed). At 6 months postpartum, participants reported on maternal self-efficacy. Generalized estimating equations were used to test the associations between depression and social support at 3 months and maternal self-efficacy at 6 months, as well as the interaction between depression and social support. Depression at 3 months was not associated with maternal self-efficacy at 6 months when controlling for depression at 6 months. Emotional support was associated with increased self-efficacy, but daily childcare support was not. We found weak evidence that childcare support when needed was associated with increased self-efficacy only among mothers with depression. Results suggest that emotional support and childcare support when needed may be helpful for promoting mothers' self-efficacy.