Table 2 Characteristics of included studies
Author & ref | Year | Participants | Study setting | Data collection & analysis | Quality assessment (score out of 10) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Sample size | Diagnosis | Country | Clinical setting recruited | Data collection | Data analysis | ||||
Beck [27] | 1992 | 7 | Postpartum depression | Self report | USA | Postpartum depression support group | One-to-one interviews | Colaizzi’s phenomenological 6-step data analysis method | 6 |
Blanchard [51] | 2009 | 7 | Antenatal depresssion | EPDS> = 10 | USA | Family health centre - primary care & counselling | Semi-structured interviews | Colaizzi’s phenomenological data analysis method | 9 |
Boath [52] | 2013 | 15 | Postpartum depression | EPDS> 12 | England | Health visitors in the community | Semi-structured interviews | Thematic framework analysis | 9 |
Edhborg [53]** | 2005 | 22 | Postpartum depression | EPDS> = 10 | Sweden | Maternity ward | Unstructured interviews | Grounded theory | 9 |
Evans [54] | 2012 | 512 online postings (unknown number of participants) | Postpartum depression | Self report | Study based in Canada (unknown location of participants) | Online postpartum depression support group | Unit of analysis was individual online messages | Directed content analysis | 7 |
Gardner [55] | 2014 | 6 | Postpartum depression | EPDS> = 10 | England | NHS commissioned parenting groups. | Semi-structured interviews | Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis | 8 |
Hanley [56] | 2006 | 10 | Postnatal depression | EPDS> = 12 & clinical diagnosis | Wales | General Practice/ primary care. | Semi-structured interviews | Content analysis using Colaizzi’s method | 6 |
Highet [28] | 2014 | 28 | Postnatal depression | Self report | Australia | Website of 3rd sector organisation | 24 Face to face and 4 telephone interviews | Grounded theory | 8 |
Jackson [57] | 2020 | 21 | Antenatal or postnatal depression. | Self report | England | Flyers, health visitors, midwives, support groups and local press. | Semi-structured interviews (18 face-to-face & 3 telephone) | Thematic analysis | 10 |
Keefe [58] | 2016 | 30 | Postpartum depression | Self report | USA | Flyers in an urban health centre serving low-income residents. | Semi-structured face-to-face interviews | Constant comparative analysis | 4 |
Keefe [59] | 2019 | 30 | Postpartum depression | Self report | USA | Flyers in an urban health centre serving low-income residents | Semi-structured face-to-face interviews | Constant comparative analysis | 5 |
Letourneau [60] | 2007 | 41 | Postpartum depression | Self report | Canada | Newspapers and community health care clinics | 41 Semi-structured interviews & 11 focus group interviews | Thematic content analysis | 9 |
Mauthner [61] | 1995 | 18 | Postpartum depression | Self report | England | Details not available | Semi-structured interviews | Voice centred relational method | 5 |
Mauthner [62]** | 1998 | 18 | Postpartum depression | Self report | England | Local and national organisations, support groups, health clinics & ‘network sampling’ | Semi-structured in-depth interviews | Voice centred relational method | 6 |
Montgomery [63]** | 2009 | 27 | Perinatal depression | Self report | Canada | Peer support groups, community mental health agency, public health agency & family play centres | Unstructured interviews | Narrative analysis | 7 |
Morrow [64] | 2008 | 18 | Postnatal depression | Self-report | Canada | General and family practitioners, community-based organisations, | Semi-structured interviews | Ethnographic narrative approach | 8 |
Nahas [65] | 1999 | 45 | Postpartum depression | Self report | Australia | Arabic community centres | Unstructured interviews | Phenomenological study | 9 |
O’Mahony [66] | 2012 | 30 | Postpartum depression | EPDS> = 10 | Canada | Health care providers & organisations that provide mental health services | Semi-structured interviews | Critical ethnographic method | 10 |
Raymond [67] | 2009 | 9 | Antenatal depression | Self report | England | GPs, nurseries, health visitors | Semi-structured interviews | Thematic analysis | 9 |
Recto [68] | 2020 | 20 | Perinatal depression | Self report | USA | Parenting classes - school nurses and social workers helped recruit | Interviews | Deductive content analysis | 7 |
Roseth [69] | 2011 | 4 | Postpartum depression | EPDS> = 13 or clinical diagnosis | Norway | Local healthcare clinic nurses or psych outpatient dept | Interviews | Descriptive-phenomenological method | 6 |
Scrandis [70] | 2005 | 10 | Postpartum depression | Self report | Unknown | Community sites - churches, postpartum support groups, home visiting programs | Semi-structured interviews | Grounded theory | 5 |
Shafiei [71] | 2015 | 39 | Postnatal depression | EPDS or self report | Australia | Antenatal clinics or postnatal wards | 39 Semi-structured telephone interviews then 10 face-to-face in depth interviews | Thematic analysis | 9 |
Tang [72] | 2016 | 38 | Postpartum depression | Self report | China | Convenience sample from community | Semi-structured interviews online | Grounded theory approach and constant comparison method | 6 |
Taylor [18] | 2021 | 14 | Perinatal depression | Self report | England | NHS health providers from primary care to acute and secondary mental health care | Semi-structured interviews | Social constructionist theory. Thematic analysis. | 10 |
Templeton [73] | 2003 | 20 | Postnatal depression | EPDS> = 12 | England | Local community known to health viitors | 6 Semi-structured interviews + 14 from focus groups | Descriptive thematic analysis | 6 |
Wittkowski [74]** | 2012 | 10 | Postnatal depression | EPDS> = 12 | England | Health visitors and midwives. | Face to face interviews | Constant comparison and grounded theory approach | 8 |