Perinatal Interpersonal Psychotherapy Group for Distressed Women

Primary outcomes

1. Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale

   Time frame: the seventh to ninth month in pregnancy, four month postpartum, eight month postpartum,twelve month postpartum

   The Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS, Cox et al., 1987) was used to assess depressive symptoms. It consists of ten Likert-type items with 0 to 3 points, with higher scores indicating more depressive symptoms over the past week. Following the previous study (Su et al., 2007), we used higher than 12 to define participants with significant depressive tendencies.

2. Dyadic Adjustment Scale

   Time frame: the seventh to ninth month in pregnancy, four month postpartum, eight month postpartum,twelve month postpartum

   The Dyadic Adjustment Scale (DAS, Spanier, 1976) assessed women's perceived quality of either married or unmarried couple relationship. The scale consists of 32 items, primarily scored in a 6-point scale (27 items). It measures four factors: dyadic consensus, dyadic satisfaction, dyadic cohesion, and affectionate expression. Higher scores indicate better dyadic adjustment in respective aspects.

3. Social Network Interaction System Questionnaire (SNISQ, Lay & Liu, 1996)

   Time frame: the seventh to ninth month in pregnancy, four month postpartum, eight month postpartum,twelve month postpartum

   The Social Network Interaction System Questionnaire (SNISQ, Lay & Liu, 1996) was used to evaluate perceptions of social support from partners, original families, and in-laws. The SNISQ consists of nine Likert-type items with 1 to 4 points, with higher scores indicating better- perceived support from specific individuals.

4. Satisfaction with Interpersonal Relationships Scale (Chan et al., 2002)

   Time frame: the seventh to ninth month in pregnancy, four month postpartum, eight month postpartum,twelve month postpartum

   Chan et al. (2002) used the Satisfaction with Interpersonal Relationships Scale (SWIRS,) to assess women's satisfaction with their relationships with partners and mothers-in-law over the past few weeks. We expanded the scale to include ratings of relationships with fathers, mothers, and fathers-in-law, resulting in five items. The SWIRS is a Likert-type item with 1 to 7 points, with higher scores indicating greater satisfaction with the relationship.

5. Mother-Infant Bonding Inventory (Shieh et al., 2015)

   Time frame: the seventh to ninth month in pregnancy, four month postpartum, eight month postpartum,twelve month postpartum

   The Mother-Infant Bonding Inventory (MIBI, Shieh et al., 2015) assessed mothers' thoughts, feelings, and commitment toward their infants. The MIBI consists of 25 items scored on 1 to 6 points. Its four factors are proximity, parental adjustment, commitment, and confidence of reciprocity. Higher scores indicate good mother-infant bonding in specific aspects.