Understanding experiences of social support as a coping resource among immigrant women with postpartum depression: an integrative literature review
Date
2014-12-19
Authors
Kassam, Shahin
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Abstract
The purpose of this project was to conduct an integrative literature review that explores experiences of social support as a coping resource among immigrant women with postpartum depression (PPD). Postcolonial feminism and Stewart’s (1989) conceptualization of social support as a coping resource informed my review revealing contextual complexities and deepening comprehension of a determinant of health as well as a population that has historically been poorly understood. In applying Whittmore and Knafl’s (2004) integrative literature review methods, I found 11 primary sources conducted in Canada, Australia, United States and Malaysia between 1999 and 2013. Data analysis revealed four themes and three coexisting issues illuminating contextual influences of poverty, gender, culture, abuse and trauma. The themes also emphasize the exchange of knowledge within trusting relationships as significant within the experience of a coping resource. Recommendations for practice are discussed within the advanced practice nurse’s three spheres of influence (Fulton, 2010).
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immigrant women, postpartum depression, social support, coping, postcolonial feminism