Pregnancy-Related Anxiety, Perceived Parental Self-Efficacy and the Influence of Parity and Age

Robyn Brunton, Nicole Simpson and Rachel Dryer
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Robyn Brunton: School of Psychology, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst 2795, Australia
Nicole Simpson: School of Psychology, Charles Sturt University, Bathurst 2795, Australia
Rachel Dryer: School of Behavioural and Health Sciences, Australian Catholic University, Strathfield 2135, Australia

IJERPH, 2020, vol. 17, issue 18, 1-17

Abstract: Pregnancy-related anxiety is contextualised by pregnancy and is a health concern for the mother and child. Perceived parental self-efficacy is associated with this anxiety and age and parity are identified as influential factors. This research, therefore, predicted that negative perceptions of parental self-efficacy would predict greater pregnancy-related anxiety, moderated by parity and age. Participants ( N = 771) were recruited online and assessed for perceived parental self-efficacy, pregnancy-related anxiety, and demographics. Moderation models showed that the psychosocial and sociodemographic factors combined predicted up to 49% of the variance. Parental self-efficacy predicted anxiety in the areas of body image, worry about themselves, baby concerns, pregnancy acceptance, attitudes towards medical staff and childbirth, and avoidance. Parity predicted pregnancy-related anxiety both overall and in childbirth concerns, worry about self, baby concerns and attitudes towards childbirth. Age predicted baby concerns. There was a significant moderation effect for pregnancy acceptance indicating that primiparous women with low perceptions of parental self-efficacy are less accepting of their pregnancy. Results suggest that parity and parental self-efficacy may be risk factors for first-time mothers for pregnancy-related anxiety.

Keywords: pregnancy-related anxiety; maternal attitudes; prenatal attachment; parental expectations; parity; fear of childbirth (search for similar items in EconPapers)
JEL-codes: I I1 I3 Q Q5 (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2020
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations: View citations in EconPapers (2)

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