RÉSUMÉ
OBJECTIVES: We aimed to determine whether the adult attachment styles of pregnant women could predict development of postpartum depression. METHODS: Korean version of Revised Adult Attachment Scale, State Trait Anxiety Inventory-State/Trait (STAI-S/T), and Center for Epidemiologic Studies-Depression Scale (CES-D) were administered at baseline. Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), Parenthood Stress Questionnaire (PSQ), STAI-S, and CES-D were assessed at week 2 and 6 postpartum. Participants were categorized into the secure-mom (SM ; n=48) or insecure-mom (IM ; n=9) group. RESULTS: While STAI-S scores in SM showed a continuous decrease during the entire observation period, STAI-S scores in IM decreased during the first two weeks but increased during the next four weeks. While SM showed decreased CES-D scores from week 2 to 6, IM showed increased CES-D scores from week 2 to 6. Although SM showed decreased EPDS scores from week 2 to 6, IM showed increased EPDS scores from week 2 to 6. In SM, the change in EDPS score from week 2 to week 6 showed positive correlation with PSQ-ability and PSQ-social subscale scores. CONCLUSION: Assessing the maternal adult attachment style before giving birth appears to be helpful for screening the high-risk group who are vulnerable to development of postpartum depression.