F.C. Kunseler

The interrelationship between pregnancy-specific anxiety and general anxiety across pregnancy: a longitudinal study

Abstract Background: High levels of prenatal maternal anxiety – either pregnancy-specific anxiety or general anxiety – may have detrimental effects on both the mother and her child. It is currently unknown how these two different expressions of anxiety influence each other over time during pregnancy. Aims: This study aimed to describe the relationship between state, trait and pregnancy-specific anxiety levels across pregnancy. Methods: Longitudinal data from three data-waves of a large-scaled sample of nulliparous normal risk pregnant women were used to display associations over time by means of autoregressive and cross-lagged panel models. Results: Cross-lagged, cross-time pathways from pregnancy-specific anxiety to state as well as trait anxiety were positively significant, while vice versa the most consistent links were found from trait anxiety to pregnancy-specific anxiety. Conclusions: We conclude that pregnancy-specific anxiety and general anxiety appear to influence each other over time, resulting in heightened anxiety for some soon-to-be mothers.

PRENATAL CHANGES IN PARENTING SELF-EFFICACY: LINKAGES WITH ANXIETY AND DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS IN PRIMIPAROUS WOMEN

The aim of the study was to examine parenting self-efficacy in relation to depressive and anxiety symptoms during pregnancy. Five hundred thirty-three first-time pregnant women completed questionnaires at 12, 22, and 32 weeks of pregnancy that measure parenting self-efficacy, anxiety, and depressive symptoms. Parenting self-efficacy increased slightly but significantly over the course of pregnancy. Higher levels of depressive symptoms as well as state and trait anxiety symptoms were related to lower expectations of parenting self-efficacy at all time points, but only anxiety symptoms uniquely predicted parenting self-efficacy. Higher levels of anxiety symptoms in the first trimester predicted less positive change in parenting self-efficacy over the course of pregnancy, but depressive symptoms did not when anxiety levels were taken into account. The findings highlight the role of antenatal anxiety symptoms as a predictor of suboptimal preparation for the parenting role in first-time-expecting mothers. Possible explanations and implications for clinical practice are briefly discussed.

Changes in Parenting Self-Efficacy and Mood Symptoms in the Transition to Parenthood: A Bidirectional Association

SYNOPSIS Objective. Anxiety and depressive symptoms are assumed to relate to parenting self-efficacy in the context of changes and adaptations taking place in the transition to parenthood. The aim of this study was to elucidate the direction of effects. Design. Participants were 822 first-time expectant women who filled out questionnaires on depressive and anxiety symptoms and parenting self-efficacy at 32 weeks of pregnancy and at 3 and 12 months postpartum. Results. From 32 weeks of pregnancy to 3 months postpartum, parenting self-efficacy increased, whereas anxiety and depressive symptoms decreased. Multivariate response models showed that higher prenatal parenting self-efficacy was associated with more decreases in anxiety and depressive symptoms; lower prenatal mood symptoms were associated with more increases in parenting self-efficacy to 3 months postpartum. Higher postpartum parenting self-efficacy at 3 months predicted less increase in trait anxiety from 3 to 12 months postpartum. Conclusions. Parenting self-efficacy appears to be a result of mental health and a predictor for the course of mental health in first-time mothers. These results highlight the importance of focusing on both factors for intervention and prevention efforts.

Weakened Resilience in Parenting Self-Efficacy in Pregnant Women Who Were Abused in Childhood: An Experimental Test

This study tested experimentally whether the combination of a history of childhood abuse and confrontation with difficult infant temperament is associated with negative changes in parenting self-efficacy. First-time pregnant women (N = 243) participated in the Adult Attachment Interview, which was used to assess the occurrence of abuse by parents in childhood and unresolved representations, and completed a task asking them to respond to infant cries. Sixty of the 243 participants (25%) experienced childhood abuse, mostly physical or sexual. The task simulated infant temperamental difficulty by manipulating soothing success in order to reflect an easy-to-soothe (80% soothing success) and a difficult-to-soothe infant (20% soothing success). Both after baseline and after each of the two stimulus series women assessed their parenting self-efficacy. Women who reported childhood abuse did not differ from women who reported no childhood abuse in parenting self-efficacy at baseline or in response to the easy-to-soothe infant (relative to baseline), but decreased more in parenting self-efficacy following the difficult-to-soothe infant. Effects did not vary according to resolution of trauma. These findings suggest that in response to infant temperamental difficulty, women who experienced childhood abuse may more easily lose confidence in their parenting abilities, which underlines the importance of preparing at-risk women for the possible challenges that come along with parenthood.