Depression and Social Support in Mothers of Children with Cerebral Palsy: A Longitudinal Study

Social support and depression levels for mothers of children with cerebral palsy may change over time. Due to difficulties in data collection, studies that longitudinally investigate changes in social support and depression for mothers of children with cerebral palsy are insufficient. This longitudinal study aimed to investigate changes in social support and depression among mothers of children with cerebral palsy. This study included 215 mothers of children with cerebral palsy in South Korea. Their levels of social support and depression were measured, and the collected data were analyzed using latent growth modeling. Examining the model fit for social support and depression revealed that the second-year change model was suitable for social support and the third-year change model was suitable for depression. The relation between social support and the change trajectory of depression was identified through a multivariate latent growth model. High social support was significantly associated with low initial depression, and the ongoing increase in social support continued to reduce depression. Continuous reinforcement of social support is necessary to reduce depression in mothers of children with cerebral palsy.