Predictors of depression in couples undergoing fertility treatment

The purpose of the current study was to examine the influence of sexual concern, marital communication and positive affect on depressive in couples undergoing fertility treatment. Data from the participants came from a self-report questionnaire, comprising of items which were derived from the Infertility Self-Efficacy Scale (ISES), The Fertility Problem Inventory (FPI) and The Mental Health Index (MHI). One hundred and Eighty-five participants were recruited and were split into two groups, couples who had been trying to conceive under 24 months and those who had been trying to conceive for over 24 months. It was predicted that sexual concern and marital communication would be significant predictors of depression, in both time groups. Positive affect was predicted to be a significant predictor of depression in couples; however no predictions in regards to differences in scores between the two time frames were made. Both sexual concern and marital communication were not significant predictors of depression in couples who have been trying to conceive less than 24 months, however positive affect was a significant predictor of depressive scores. Results for couples who have been trying to conceive over 24 months indicate positive affect and sexual concern significantly predict depression scores, however marital communication remained non-significant