“It's All the Rage These Days”: University Students' Attitudes Toward Vaginal and Cesarean Birth

Stoll, Kathrin; Fairbrother, Nichole; Carty, Elaine; Jordan, Nané; Miceli, Carole; Vostrcil, Yarra; Willihnganz, Laura

doi:10.1111/j.1523-536x.2009.00310.x

Cited by 55 publications

(70 citation statements)

References 23 publications

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“…In addition, the refinement and development of the CFPP scale was informed by quantitative and qualitative findings from a large sample of young women and men (14,15) thus enhancing the validity of items added to the scale. 16 …”

Section: Strengths and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Elevated risk perceptions were associated with increased fear of birth among men (15); when asked why young men and women preferred Cesarean section over vaginal birth, 56% of women and 32% of men chose CS to avoid labour pain and/or because they are afraid of pain (16). 6 This body of literature informed the development of a fear of childbirth measure for young women and men who plan to have children in the future.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Cross-cultural development and psychometric evaluation of a measure to assess fear of childbirth prior to pregnancy

Stoll

Hauck

Downe

et al. 2016

Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare

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Background: Assessment of childbirth fear, in advance of pregnancy, and early identification of modifiable factors contributing to fear can inform public health initiatives and/or school-based educational programming for the next generation of maternity care consumers. We developed and evaluated a short fear of birth scale that incorporates the most common dimensions of fear reported by men and women prior to pregnancy, fear of: labour pain, being out of control and unable to cope with labour and birth, complications, and irreversible physical damage.Methods: University students in six countries (Australia, Canada, England, Germany, Iceland, and the United States, n=2240) participated in an online survey to assess their fears and attitudes about birth. We report internal consistency reliability, corrected-itemto-total correlations, factor loadings and convergent and discriminant validity of the new scale. Results:The Childbirth Fear -Prior to Pregnancy (CFPP) scale showed high internal consistency across samples (α >0.86). All corrected-item-to total correlations exceeded 0.45, supporting the uni-dimensionality of the scale. Construct validity of the CFPP was supported by a high correlation between the new scale and a two-item visual analog scale that measures fear of birth (r >0.6 across samples). Weak correlations of the CFPP with 2 scores on measures that assess related psychological states (anxiety, depression and stress) support the discriminant validity of the scale. Conclusion:The CFPP is a short, reliable and valid measure of childbirth fear among young women and men in six countries who plan to have children. Highlights• Fear of childbirth can precede pregnancy and is associated with preferences for cesarean section among young men and women who plan to have children in the future.• Assessing fear of birth and associated factors for young adults in different countries is an important first step in understanding why some young women and men are afraid of childbirth and how this issue might be addressed.• We developed a 10-item fear of birth scale that incorporates the main dimensions of fear reported by young adults in the literature, including fear of: labour pain, bodily damage, and complications.• The Childbirth Fear -Prior to Pregnancy (CFPP) scale had high internal consistency reliability across samples, measured one underlying construct, was highly correlated with another measure of childbirth fear, and was weakly correlated with measures of depression, anxiety and stress.

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Section: Strengths and Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Cross-cultural development and psychometric evaluation of a measure to assess fear of childbirth prior to pregnancy

Stoll

Hauck

Downe

et al. 2016

Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare

Self Cite

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The original survey consisted of Likert type and open-ended questions such as 'please explain why you prefer vaginal birth/cesarean section'. A thematic analysis of the qualitative data [37] was used to inform response options and to develop additional questions in the current survey. For instance, pre-defined response options for why students prefer cesarean section or vaginal birth were based on recurring issues within the qualitative accounts.…”

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confidence: 99%

Negative impressions of childbirth in a North-West England student population

Thomson

Stoll

Downe

et al. 2016

Journal of Psychosomatic Obstetrics & Gynecology

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“…Studies regarding women's choices in giving birth have shown that fear of childbirth is an important factor in their choice of cesarean section [5][6][7][8][9][10][11]. A lack of knowledge about childbirth, a negative image of giving birth and incorrect information cause fear, and this leads to women requesting a cesarean birth [12].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A lack of knowledge about childbirth, a negative image of giving birth and incorrect information cause fear, and this leads to women requesting a cesarean birth [12]. Other factors in the choice of a cesarean section are the idea that it is safer or healthier [7,9,10], avoiding damage to the body [6,9], the idea that it is safer for the baby [6,7], a recommendation by the doctor or midwife [8,13], planning the time of birth [8,10], and making a return to sexual activity easier [14] as well as if the doctor who is assisting at the birth is male [15].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%