Prenatal attachment in the pregnancy: its relationship with fear of childbirth

Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the level of prenatal attachment of pregnant women and its relationship with fear of childbirth. Methods: This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted with a total of 125 pregnant women who applied to outpatient obstetric unit of...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Meltem Uğurlu, Zehranur Çoban
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Perinatal Medicine Foundation 2022-04-01
Series:Perinatal Journal
Online Access:https://perinataljournal.com/Archive/Article/20220301010
Description
Summary:Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the level of prenatal attachment of pregnant women and its relationship with fear of childbirth. Methods: This descriptive and cross-sectional study was conducted with a total of 125 pregnant women who applied to outpatient obstetric unit of a training and research hospital in Ankara between September 2019 and March 2020. The data were collected using the “Participant Information Form”, “Wijma Delivery Expectation Questionnaire Version A (W-DEQ A)” and “Prenatal Attachment Inventory (PAI)”. Results: The average PAI score of pregnant women is 67.19±9.56. It was found that there was a significant relationship between the education level of pregnant women and the average PAI score (p=0.002). There was no significant difference between the gestational age, income level, education level, working status, obstetric characteristics of pregnant women, and average PAI score (p<0.05). A negative, weak, and significant relationship was found between W-DEQ A and PAI scores (r=-0.183, p=0.041). According to the linear regression model, it was found that the age, duration of the marriage, and fear of childbirth of pregnant women had a significant effect on the total score of PAI (p=0.001, p=0.018, p=0.019, respectively). Conclusion: The high fear of childbirth, young age and short marriage time may decrease prenatal attachment. As the fear of childbirth of pregnant women increases, the level of prenatal attachment decreases.
ISSN:1305-3124