Partner support and life satisfaction as predictors of postpartum quality of life among Iranian women

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Bahrami, N, Fathi, M, Shakibi, N, Griffiths, MD ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8880-6524 and Alimoradi, Z, 2025. Partner support and life satisfaction as predictors of postpartum quality of life among Iranian women. Discover Social Science and Health, 5: 123. ISSN 2731-0469

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Official URL: https://doi.org/10.1007/s44155-025-00283-5

Abstract

Background: The postpartum period is a critical period in terms of experiencing various physical, psychological, and social changes, all of which can affect maternal quality of life.

Aim: The main aim of the study was to investigate maternal postpartum quality of life and its predictors among Iranian women.

Method: A cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 211 Iranian women (mean age = 28.29 years) within six months postpartum. They were recruited via cluster random sampling from five urban health centers in Qazvin (October 2021–February 2022). Participants completed validated Persian versions of the Maternal Postpartum Quality of Life Questionnaire (MAPP-QOLQ), Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Postpartum Partner Support Scale (PPSS), Satisfaction with Life Scale (SWLS), Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale (EPDS), and Visual Fatigue Scale (VFS). Univariable and multivariable linear regression (stepwise method) identified predictors of postpartum QoL.

Results: The mean score on the MAPP-QOLQ items was 4.62 out of 6 (SD = 0.82) with highest scores on the relational/spouse-partner subscale (4.81) and lowest on the health/functioning subscale (4.57). The multivariable regression analysis showed that postpartum quality of life was positively predicted by life satisfaction (β = 0.310, p < 0.001), postpartum partner social support (β = 0.276, p < 0.001), and maternal age (β = 0.242, p < 0.001), and negatively predicted by postpartum depression (β = -0.218, p < 0.001), poor sleep quality (β = -0.150, p = 0.003), spouse age (β = -0.142, p = 0.029), neonatal admission at birth (β = -0.121, p = 0.001), and maternal employment status (β = -0.119, p = 0.006). Non-significant predictors were fatigue (β = -0.021, p = 0.634), gestational week at birth (β = 0.022, p = 0.575), fair economic status (β = 0.119, p = 0.066), and good economic status (β = 0.110, p = 0.107). The model explained 74% of variance (R²=0.74) in postpartum QoL.

Conclusion: Targeted interventions should prioritize enhancing life satisfaction and postpartum partner support because they were the strongest positive predictors of maternal QoL, while addressing modifiable risk factors such as depression and poor sleep quality. Culturally adapted programs, including couples-based counseling and structured mental health support are recommended with special attention to employed mothers, mothers experiencing neonatal hospitalization, and those who have older spouses.

Item Type:	Journal article
Publication Title:	Discover Social Science and Health
Creators:	Bahrami, N., Fathi, M., Shakibi, N., Griffiths, M.D. and Alimoradi, Z.
Publisher:	Springer
Date:	December 2025
Volume:	5
ISSN:	2731-0469
Identifiers:	Number Type 10.1007/s44155-025-00283-5 DOI 2486880 Other
Rights:	© The Author(s) 2025. This article is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License, which permits any non-commercial use, sharing, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, as long as you give appropriate credit to the original author(s) and the source, provide a link to the Creative Commons licence, and indicate if you modified the licensed material. You do not have permission under this licence to share adapted material derived from this article or parts of it. The images or other third party material in this article are included in the article’s Creative Commons licence, unless indicated otherwise in a credit line to the material. If material is not included in the article’s Creative Commons licence and your intended use is not permitted by statutory regulation or exceeds the permitted use, you will need to obtain permission directly from the copyright holder. To view a copy of this licence, visit http://creativecommons.org/licens es/by-nc-nd/4.0/.
Divisions:	Schools > School of Social Sciences
Record created by:	Laura Borcherds
Date Added:	20 Aug 2025 08:25
Last Modified:	20 Aug 2025 08:25
URI:	https://irep.ntu.ac.uk/id/eprint/54231