en Midwifery Orginal research <span style="line-height:2;"><span style="font-family:Times New Roman;"><span style="font-size:14px;"><span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span sans-serif=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><span new="" roman="" times="">Background:</span></b></span> <span new="" roman="" times="">Postpartum depression (PPD) and domestic violence are both significant public health concerns that disproportionately affect women. </span></span></span><br> <span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span sans-serif=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><span new="" roman="" times="">Objectives:</span></b></span><b> </b><span new="" roman="" times="">The purpose of this study was to investigate the mediating role of marital satisfaction in the relationship between PPD and domestic violence among women in the postpartum period.</span></span></span><br> <span new="" roman="" times=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b>Methods:</b></span><span style="color:black"> This descriptive study employed a structural equation modeling approach. The sample comprised 319 postpartum women who visited healthcare centers in Ahvaz City in 2023. Participants were selected using a convenience sampling method. Research instruments included the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale, the Violence Against Women Questionnaire, and the Marital Satisfaction Scale. The collected data were analyzed using structural equation modeling with SPSS-26 and Amos-26 statistical software. Bootstrapping, a resampling technique, was employed to assess the significance of the indirect effect of domestic violence on PPD through marital satisfaction, thereby specifically examining the mediation hypothesis.</span></span><br> <span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span sans-serif=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><span new="" roman="" times="">Results:</span></b></span><span new="" roman="" times=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"> </span>The results demonstrated a significant negative correlation between domestic violence and marital satisfaction (&beta;=-0.37, p=0.001). PDD and marital satisfaction were significantly correlated (&beta;=-0.31. p=0.001). Additionally, domestic violence was positively correlated with PDD (&beta;=0.25, p=0.008). Bootstrapping results also confirmed a significant indirect effect of domestic violence on PDD through marital satisfaction (p=0.029).</span></span></span><br> <span style="unicode-bidi:embed"><span sans-serif=""><span style="color:#2980b9;"><b><span new="" roman="" times="">Conclusion:</span></b></span><span new="" roman="" times=""><span style="color:#000066;"> </span>It found that domestic violence negatively impacts marital satisfaction, which in turn can increase the risk of PDD. The study suggests that mental health professionals should consider both domestic violence and marital distress when assessing postpartum women and that interventions aimed at improving marital satisfaction may help reduce the risk of PDD.</span></span></span><br> &nbsp;</span></span></span> Depression, Postpartum, Domestic Violence, Women 12 21 http://nmcjournal.zums.ac.ir/browse.php?a_code=A-10-1005-1&slc_lang=en&sid=1 Bahareh Mohammadian mohammadianbhre@gmail.com 100319475328460014487 100319475328460014487 No Department of Psychology, Ahvaz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz, Iran Saeed Bakhtiarpour bakhtiyarpours@gmail.com 100319475328460014488 100319475328460014488 Yes Department of Psychology, Ahvaz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz, Iran Farah Naderi naderifa2@gmail.com 100319475328460014489 100319475328460014489 No Department of Psychology, Ahvaz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz, Iran Zahra Dasht Bozorgi 100319475328460014490 100319475328460014490 No Department of Psychology, Ahvaz Branch, Islamic Azad University, Ahvaz, Iran