Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology最新文献

Background: Mental health disorders are important prenatal and postpartum health complications. In the rapidly changing healthcare landscape, concerns have been raised about maternal mental well-being in the United States. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between delayed perinatal care and women's mental health during pregnancy and postpartum.

Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey from March through April, 2022, of women currently pregnant (n = 590) or one-year postpartum (n = 525). A generalised linear model examined the association of delayed care during pregnancy and postpartum with mental health outcomes, specifically Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) and Generalised Anxiety Disorder (GAD).

Results: Individuals who experienced delayed care tended to exhibit higher rates of mental health symptoms compared to those without delays, especially during postpartum (69.4% vs. 30.7% for MDD; 46.6% vs. 24.8% for GAD). The results from multivariable regression analysis were consistent, showing a greater prevalence of MDD (aPR [adjusted Prevalence Ratio] 2.25, 95%CI 1.82-2.79; p < .001) and GAD (aPR 2.00, 95%CI 1.53-2.61; p < .001), respectively, when delays in postpartum care occurred. Reasons for delayed care, such as financial and time issues, lack of transportation, nervousness about seeing a doctor, and rural residency, were associated with increased mental health symptoms.

Conclusion: The current analysis highlights the significant adverse health impact of delayed care among pregnant and postpartum women. Continued, targeted efforts to reduce practical barriers to accessing prenatal and postpartum care are required to ensure maternal mental health.

Background: Parental stress is a critical problem because it affects both the mental health of the mother and children's development. In addition to many factors related to birth and marriage, mother - infant bonding and psychological inflexibility are essential factors that can affect stress. In this study, we examined the effects of the psychological processes of mothers and factors related to pregnancy, mother, environment on parental stress, and their relationships.

Methods: A sociodemographic variables scale, Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II, Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire, and Parental Stress Scale were completed by 115 mothers in their first postpartum year. The model created with the correlation and regression results was subjected to path analysis.

Results: Breastfeeding, psychological inflexibility, and mother - infant bonding are related to parental stress. The bonding problem is the mediator of the relationship between psychological inflexibility and parental stress. The entire effect of sleep quality on parental stress occurred through psychological inflexibility.

Conclusion: Efforts should be directed towards improving the bond between the mother and infant and enhancing the mother's psychological flexibility to lessen the negative impacts of stress. Breastfeeding should not be treated categorically, and its potential adverse effects should not be ignored.

Background: Pregnancy is a transformative time for women and their bodies, and therefore thoughts and feelings about the body understandably change during this period. While previous research has established the impact of body dissatisfaction on factors like antenatal attachment and maternal mental health, there is a notable gap in understanding its long-term effects on postnatal factors. This is often due to high attrition rates in longitudinal studies. Using retrospective measures could address this issue, however a measure of retrospective pregnant body dissatisfaction has not yet been identified.

Aims: This paper aimed to create a retrospective measure of pregnancy body dissatisfaction by adapting a previously validated measure. It also aimed to investigate the relationship between retrospective accounts of body dissatisfaction during pregnancy and postnatal anxiety, depression, and bonding.

Method: Cross-sectional online survey data was collected from women postnatally (N = 404).

Findings: An exploratory and confirmatory factor analysis identified a two-factor model of retrospective body dissatisfaction, adapted from the Body Understanding Measure for Pregnancy Scale, which was equivalent to two of the original subscales. Using this factor structure, linear regressions demonstrated that higher levels of retrospective pregnant body dissatisfaction were associated with elevated rates of postnatal anxiety and depression and lower bonding scores.

Conclusions: This study successfully established a measure for assessing retrospective pregnant body dissatisfaction, potentially aiding future research. Additionally, it has highlighted the link between pregnant body dissatisfaction and postnatal levels of depression, anxiety, and bonding. Thus, improving the pregnant bodily experience may have the potential to enhance the postnatal experience.

Background: Breastfeeding has a positive impact on child and maternal health outcomes. Black and Latina women and adolescent mothers have lower rates of breastfeeding initiation and continuance in the U.S. Maternal depression and psychosocial stressors may contribute to reduced rates of breastfeeding. The current study aims to better understand behaviours and associated factors related to breastfeeding in a diverse group of adolescent mothers attending a teen-tot clinic for postpartum and infant well care.

Methods: Participants were 191 mother-infant dyads. Mother's age ranged from 13 to 25, and 54% of mothers identified as Latina, 22% Black, 11% more than one race and 5% white. Demographic information and breastfeeding behaviour were abstracted from the medical record. Rates of postpartum mood/anxiety symptoms and psychosocial stressors were obtained from screening measures completed at medical visits.

Results: Analyses revealed that 87% of adolescent mothers in the sample initiated breastfeeding at birth and the racial/ethnic breakdown of those mothers closely mirrored the overall population (58% Hispanic or Latina, 17% Black, 10% more than one race, 5% white). At 2 months postpartum, only 41% of the population was still breastfeeding. Mothers with significant mood/anxiety symptoms at the newborn visit were more likely to be breastfeeding at the 1- and 2-month visits. Mothers with psychosocial stressors at the newborn visit were less likely to be breastfeeding at the 1- and 2-month visits.

Conclusion: Efforts to promote health equity through breastfeeding for at-risk mothers must occur within the first few weeks postpartum and must consider associated factors including postpartum mood/anxiety symptoms and psychosocial stressors.

Objective: This study investigated the association between childbirth experience and maternal parenting style during early infancy, using attachment theory and the caregiving system as guiding frameworks.

Method: Participants were 285 Israeli mothers who gave birth in the previous year. They completed validated self-report questionnaires assessing their childbirth experience (physiological versus medicalised birth), adult attachment (ECR-RS), and parenting style towards their infants (IPSQ).

Results: Mothers who experienced physiological childbirth reported lower levels of discipline, involvement, routine, and anxiety in their parenting style compared to those who underwent medicalised childbirth. Due to extremely low variance in attachment measures, moderation effects could not be meaningfully assessed.

Conclusions: The findings suggest that the childbirth experience is associated with variations in early maternal caregiving. Mothers who experienced physiological birth tended to report a less controlling parenting style, possibly due to enhanced maternal empowerment and hormonal processes that facilitate bonding and emotion regulation. Conversely, medicalised births may disrupt these processes, increasing anxiety and control-oriented parenting behaviours. Perinatal care should prioritise not only physical safety of the mother and baby but also their psychological and emotional well-being, offering supportive and respectful birthing options.

Background: India's rising dependence on institutional childbirth through Caesarean sections has intensified both the health-related risks and the financial pressures experienced by women and their households. The escalating costs of Caesarean deliveries have become a significant source of out-of-pocket spending, with the burden falling most heavily on low-income families in Kerala.

Objective: This study aims to identify the cognitive, emotional, and healthcare related predictors that influence women's intentions to opt for elective Caesarean delivery. It seeks to understand the underlying factors that shape this preference, using the theory of planned behavior framework, which emphasizes the role of attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control in shaping behavioral intentions.

Methods: Using a cross-sectional design, a structured household survey was conducted among 1,030 married women in Kerala planning future pregnancies. The main outcome measured was their stated intention to opt for a Caesarean delivery in a subsequent birth. Key predictors included unmet health needs, childbirth-related knowledge, depression severity, attitudes, subjective norms, and perceived behavioral control. Binary logistic regression and propensity score matching (STATA 14.0; p < 0.05) were applied to identify statistically significant associations.

Results: Greater childbirth-related knowledge significantly lowered the likelihood of intending to choose a Caesarean delivery (intermediate knowledge: OR = 0.167; good knowledge: OR = 0.297). Depression severity displayed a nonlinear relationship: moderately severe depression reduced the intention to opt for a C-section (OR = 0.140), whereas severe depression substantially increased it (OR = 4.357). The most influential predictor was unmet healthcare need (OR = 27.876), a result further supported by propensity score matching.

Conclusion: Women's intentions to choose elective Caesarean delivery are strongly influenced by their level of knowledge, psychological well-being, and access to healthcare. Strategies that strengthen health literacy, bolster mental health support, and reduce healthcare barriers may help decrease unnecessary C-sections and enhance maternal health outcomes.

Aims/background: Breaking the cycle of infertility through assisted reproductive technology (ART) can be burdensome for couples, potentially impacting the family. Our study investigated long-term effects of infertility and ART stress on families by comparing families formed through ART with those formed through natural conception (NC).

Design/methods: Two-child families (children aged 1-14), with the first-born conceived through ART (ART-1; n = 47), the second-born conceived through ART (ART-2; n = 19), or both children conceived naturally (NC; n = 52), were assessed. Parents completed questionnaires on stress, mental health, and parenting. Fingernail and saliva samples were collected to assess salivary cortisol awakening response (CAR), fingernail cortisol, and cortisone.

Results: Infertility and ART were retrospectively described as highly stressful, varying by sex, parity, and protractedness of procedure. After successful ART, most parents no longer felt burdened by infertility and treatment, aligning with NC parents regarding stress and mental health. Yet, ART parents appeared more involved in parenthood, including greater importance of motherhood, maternal family-work conflict, and parental overprotection. ART mothers and their children had higher fingernail cortisol and cortisone than NC mothers and their children. No group differences were observed in the CAR. Past infertility and ART stress correlated with parenting and maternal chronic stress.

Conclusion: Successful ART can bring subjective relief. However, the experience of infertility and ART may manifest as high involvement in parenthood, especially among mothers, and contribute to psychobiological stress in ART mothers and their children. Longitudinal research and targeted psychological support should promote family functioning after ART.

Aim: This study aimed to determine the prevalence of excessive crying (EC) in Japanese infants and determine whether EC at two months postpartum is associated with mother-infant bonding at five months postpartum.

Methods: The participants were mothers aged 18 years or older who were hospitalised after the delivery of a full-term, singleton baby. They were recruited during their postpartum stay at a university hospital and were surveyed at two and five months postpartum using online questionnaires. The collected data were analysed using bivariate and multiple logistic regression analyses.

Results: A total of 142 mothers agreed to participate and provided written informed consent; among them, 108 and 107 responded to the survey at two and five months postpartum, respectively. The prevalence of EC among the participants was 15.7% and 6.5% at two and five months of age, respectively. Multiple logistic regression showed that EC at two months and the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale score at five months postpartum were associated with mother-infant bonding at five months postpartum (adjusted odds ratio [AOR]: 8.72, 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.10-69.29; AOR: 1.49, 95% CI: 1.19-1.87, respectively).

Conclusion: This study is the first to show that EC at two months was associated with mother-infant bonding at five months postpartum. Mothers of infants exhibiting EC need continuous support, even after EC subsides.

Background: This study aimed to examine the effects of education and counselling provided to mothers of six-month-old infants during the transition to complementary feeding on complementary feeding behaviours and parenting self-efficacy.

Methods: This randomised controlled study was conducted between December 2023 and February 2024. The sample comprised 608 mothers with six-month-old infants (Education + Counselling group n = 305, Counselling group n = 303). The study results focused on the mothers' behaviours related to complementary feeding and parenting self-efficacy The data were analysed using the Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) Version 26.0.

Results: In the Education + Counselling group, the mothers' average age was 27.43 ± 3.94 years, whereas in the Counselling group, the average age was 27.59 ± 3.91 years. There were no significant differences in sociodemographic scores between the groups. After the four-week intervention, the Complementary Feeding Behaviour Scale (CFBS) score of the Education + Counselling group (101.22 ± 10.31) was found to be significantly higher than that of the Counselling group (97.81 ± 9.79). Additionally, the parenting self-efficacy scores of the Education + Counselling group (79.18 ± 6.99) were significantly higher than those of the Counselling group (64.23 ± 14.97).

Conclusion: The education provided to mothers positively influenced their complementary feeding behaviours and increased their parenting self-efficacy. Recommendations include the development of health policies and initiatives to support healthy feeding behaviours. Online training given to mothers can be used to support complementary feeding behaviours.

Background: Dissatisfaction with childbirth is a known risk factor for childbirth-related PTSD, which in turn can impair postpartum bonding. Personality traits may help explain why some women develop childbirth-related PTSD symptoms or maintain better bonding despite similar birth experiences. This study examined the role of personality traits in the associations between birth satisfaction, childbirth-related PTSD symptoms, and postpartum bonding.

Methods: The sample consisted of 391 Lithuanian women who had given birth 4 to 12 weeks before participating in the study. Measures included the City Birth Trauma Scale, Birth Satisfaction Scale, Postpartum Bonding Questionnaire, and Big Five Inventory.

Results: Moderated mediation analysis showed that lower birth satisfaction was linked to more childbirth-related PTSD symptoms, which, in turn, were associated with poorer bonding. This indirect association was weaker among women higher in conscientiousness and stronger among those higher in neuroticism. Extraversion and agreeableness showed marginally significant moderating effects: extraversion slightly weakened the association between birth satisfaction and childbirth-related PTSD symptoms, while agreeableness slightly reduced the relationship between higher PTSD symptoms and impaired postpartum bonding. Openness did not moderate either path.

Conclusions: Personality traits can help explain individual differences in how birth satisfaction relates to childbirth-related PTSD symptoms and postpartum bonding. Agreeableness and conscientiousness can serve as protective factors, while neuroticism can increase vulnerability to these symptoms and their association with bonding difficulties. These findings highlight the importance of considering personality in perinatal mental health care, as personality traits may shape psychological responses to childbirth and their implications for mother-infant bonding.