Trying to be supermom puts working mothers at greater risk for depression, a new study finds.

In general, working moms have lower depression rates than stay-at-home mothers. But new research found that working mothers who expected that their professional and family lives could be juggled with ease showed more depressive symptoms than working mothers who predicted they would have to let some of their work or parenting responsibilities slide.

Katrina Leupp, a University of Washington sociology graduate student who led the study, analyzed survey responses from a national sample of 1,600 married mothers. The women were participants in a Labor Department longitudinal study, and as young women, they had previously" target="_blank" title="ad.预先；以前">previously answered work-life balance questions measuring whether they agreed with such statements as 'Working wives lead to more juvenile delinquency' and 'A woman is happiest if she can stay at home with her children.' When the women reached age 40, Leupp measured their levels of depression.

Leupp found that stay-at-home moms had more depression symptoms than their working counterparts, which concurs with previous studies. But among working moms, she found that those with a 'supermom' attitude