Explaining maternal antenatal attachment by psychological, clinical and sociodemographic factors: a path analysis study

• Published in: BMC pregnancy and childbirth Vol. 24; no. 1; pp. 638 - 10
• Main Authors: Camarneiro, Ana Paula Forte, Roberto, Magda Sofia, Justo, João Manuel Rosado de Miranda
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: England BioMed Central 02-10-2024; BMC
• Subjects: Adaptation, Psychological; Adolescent; Adult; Antenatal attachment; Anxiety; Anxiety - psychology; Body image; Coping; Depression - psychology; Emotions; Female; Gestational age; Humans; Marriage - psychology; Mental depression; Mother; Object Attachment; Obstetrics; Occupational stress; Path analysis; Personal Satisfaction; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Trimester, Second - psychology; Psychopathology; Questionnaires; Self image; Sociodemographic Factors; Sociodemographics; Socioeconomic Factors; Socioeconomic status; Structural equation modelling; Womens health; Young Adult; Pregnancy; Path analysis; Structural equation modelling; Antenatal attachment; Mother
• ISSN: 1471-2393; 1471-2393
• DOI: 10.1186/s12884-024-06836-x

Antenatal attachment is a fundamental concept relative to human transition to parenthood and may be influenced by several factors. The aim of this study is to find the best model to explain maternal antenatal attachment based on the interaction among sociodemographic, clinical, and psychological variables.
Pregnant women (N = 407) were interviewed during the second trimester of pregnancy while waiting for medical consultations. A sociodemographic, obstetric, and psychometric protocol was used.
path analysis.
psychopathological symptomatology, depression, anxiety, stress, occupational stress, attitudes about pregnancy and motherhood, coping styles, marital satisfaction, sociodemographic, and clinical variables.
maternal antenatal attachment in its several dimensions; quality of attachment (QA), intensity of preoccupation (IP), and global attachment (GA).
Depression, anxiety, attitudes, and marital satisfaction explained 37% of maternal antenatal QA. Age, depression, anxiety, attitudes, and marital satisfaction explained 26% of maternal antenatal IP. Age, depression, anxiety, attitudes, and marital satisfaction explained 34% of the statistical variance of maternal antenatal GA.
Factors like emotional states (depression and anxiety), attitudes towards pregnancy and motherhood, marital satisfaction, and a sociodemographic variable (age) contribute significantly for the explanation of maternal antenatal attachment.