Stress-buffering or stress-exacerbation? Social support and social undermining as moderators of the relationship between perceived stress and depressive symptoms among married people.

This prospective panel study examined social support and social undermining from the spouse as moderators of the relationship between perceived stress and depressive symptoms. Participants were 181 married people who completed questionnaires at two points in time. The interval between time 1 (T1) and time 2 (T2) was approximately 6 weeks. Multiple regression analysis showed that T1 perceived stress and T1 spouse undermining, but not T1 spouse support, predicted increases in depressive symptoms from T1 to T2. T1 spouse undermining, but not T1 spouse support, moderated the association between T1 perceived stress and T2 depressive symptoms. These findings supported a stress-exacerbation hypothesis for the effect of spouse undermining on the stress process. Discussion focuses on possible mechanisms for the stress-exacerbation effect.