Original scientific paper

https://doi.org/10.24869/psyd.2022.25

EFFECTS OF STRESS IN PREGNANCY ON PRENATAL ATTACHMENT, AND CONTRIBUTING FACTORS

Yasemin Şanlı ; Department of Midwifery, Faculty of Health Sciences, Karamanoglu Mehmetbey University, Karaman, Turkey
Nuran Nur Aypar Akbağ ; Department of Nursing, Faculty of Health Sciences, Karamanoglu Mehmetbey University, Karaman,

Abstract

Background: The mother’s having good mental health during pregnancy is important for the mother’s and fetus’s health. Stress
experienced during pregnancy can also affect prenatal attachment. In this study, it was aimed to determine the effect of the stress
level of pregnant women on prenatal attachment and the factors affecting prenatal attachment.
Subjects: In this descriptive cross-sectional study conducted in the obstetrics outpatient clinic of a training and research
hospital, 276 healthy primiparous pregnant women whose gestational age was ≥20 weeks were included. To collect the data, the
Descriptive Characteristics Form, Pregnancy Stress Rating Scale (PSRS), and Prenatal Attachment Inventory (PAI) were used.
Results: The mean scores the participants obtained from the Pregnancy Stress Rating Scale and Prenatal Attachment Inventory
were 40.13±31.22 and 46.87±16.62 respectively. A moderately statistically significant negative correlation was determined between
pregnancy stress and prenatal attachment (r=-0.42, p=0.000). In the study, it was observed that pregnancy stress level of the
participating pregnant women decreased as the age increased (r=-0.13, p=0.026), but that it increased as their education and
income levels increased (χ2=8.150, p=0.043- (χ2=6.785, p=0.034). The participants’ attachment levels were not correlated with
variables such as age, education, baby's sex and gestational age, but prenatal attachment levels of the participants who received
social support while they did house hold chores were statistically significantly higher (U=7872.500, p=0.025).
Conclusions: It was observed that as the prenatal attachment level of the participating pregnant women decreased, as their
stress level increased, that their stress level decreased as their age increased, that that their stress level increased as the education
and income levels increased, and that the prenatal attachment of the participants who received social support when they did
household chores was higher. It is thought that health personnel can improve prenatal attachment by taking necessary steps to
reduce the stress levels of pregnant women in this process.

Keywords

pregnancy; pregnancy stress; prenatal attachment

Hrčak ID:

275934

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/275934

Publication date:

3.5.2022.

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