INTERGENERATIONAL ATTACHMENT AND PSYCHOLOGICAL WELL-BEING DURING PREGNANCY.
Contributors: University of California, San Francisco.
Published: 1984
Number of pages: 229
Subjects: Health Sciences, Nursing.
Description: The purpose of this study was to explore the nature of human attachment from a life span perspective, with particular emphasis upon the phenomenon of attachment relationships of women during pregnancy and its influence on their psychological well-being.

Through the examination of propositions stemming from attachment and developmental theory, intergenerational attachment was viewed as attachment relationships of the individual developing over a life span, the component parts being mother-daughter, husband-wife, and maternal-fetal attachment. Social support was included along with attachment variables as there has been some evidence for positive correlations between social support and well-being. Attachments acquired in infancy were considered as prototypes of supportive interactions in adulthood, as proposed by social support theorists in recent years.

The study design represented a passive observational approach. Multiple correlational and regression techniques were used to analyze the relationships among study variables. The findings were based on data derived from self-completed structured questionnaires: Lederman's Prenatal Self-Evaluation Questionnaire, Cranley's Maternal-Fetal Attachment Scale, Norbeck's Social Support Scale, and Dupuy's General Well-Being Schedule. The sample of 115 women, 18 through 35 years of age, had no preexisting medical conditions and were married and living with their husbands. Access to the woman was available through the prenatal classes at a small urban health unit in southwestern Canada.

Results of the study supported the hypotheses that mother-daughter attachment and husband-wife attachment had strong positive relationships with psychological well-being during pregnancy (p < .05). Study predictions that maternal-fetal attachment scores were related to mother-daughter attachment, husband-wife attachment, and social support scores of pregnant women were not supported. The findings confirmed that the intimate and unique attachment relationship developed over a life span by the pregnant woman with her own mother, and later on with her husband, had an impact upon the psychological well-being of women during pregnancy. Findings will provide new insights into the role of unique attachment relationships in promoting psychological well-being for pregnant women. Additionally, the results may be viewed as a means of identifying risks in emotional health of women during pregnancy. However, the findings related to maternal-fetal attachment raised several questions that need further investigation.
Notes: Source: Dissertation Abstracts International, Volume: 46-05, Section: B, page: 1515.

Thesis (D.N.S.)--UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, SAN FRANCISCO, 1984.

School code: 0034.