Parallel mediation of the association between affective disorders and perceived stress: the role of anticipatory consistency and social support

Abstract

Background . Stress is a key pathogenetic factor in affective disorders, yet the mechanisms by which clinical status exacerbates distress remain insufficiently understood. Anticipatory capacity and perceived social support are major resources for psychological adaptation. Although their individual roles are well-documented, their joint, parallel contribution to the relationship between affective disorder and stress is still underexplored. Objective . To test a parallel mediation model in which anticipatory capacity and perceived social support mediate the association between clinical status (presence of an affective disorder) and the level of perceived stress. Design and methods. The study included 148 participants (74 patients with affective disorders and 74 healthy volunteers), matched by sex and age. The Perceived Stress Scale-10, a short version of the Anticipatory Consistency Test, and the Social Support Questionnaire F-SOZU-22 were used. Mediation analysis was performed with the SEM module of JASP using robust standard errors (HC3) and bootstrapping. Results . Both indirect effects were significant. However, the patterns of associations differed: in healthy individuals, anticipatory consistency was negatively associated with stress, whereas in patients this association was absent. Perceived social support remained negatively associated with stress in both groups. Conclusion . Perceived social sup port is a stable mediator: decreased support in an affective disorder leads to increased distress. Anticipatory consistency plays only a partial mediating role: its protective function is evident in healthy individuals but is lost in patients with affective disorders.