Parenting and Depression among Homeless Women: Understanding the Mediating Role of Quality of Life

Homeless mothers represent an extremely vulnerable population. Research consistently revealed that they experience poor quality of life (QoL) and increased depression. Evidence also indicated that increased QoL is associated with improvements in depression. Whether the effect of parenting status on depression is mediated by QoL is unclear. This study, therefore, examined how parenting status affects depression among homeless women, through subjective quality of life (SQoL). This secondary analysis drew from the 325 chronically homeless women who completed the At Home/Chez Soi Study baseline questionnaire. Associations were examined using bivariate analyses and mediation analyses were performed using bootstrapped regression models. SQoL explained the association between parenting and depression; leisure accounted for the largest proportion (27%) of the variance on depression. The findings highlighted the importance of providing supports to homeless mothers, so as to improve their SQoL and depression. Specifically, findings suggested that leisure could partially improve depression among homeless mothers.