Maternal attachment, depression, and body dissatisfaction in pregnant women

Abstract

Maternal attachment, or the affiliation a mother feels towards her child, is an important predictor of maternal health and fetal/infant outcomes. Thus, it is important to identify psychological factors which may impact maternal attachment. This study examined associations among maternal attachment, depression, and body dissatisfaction (BD) throughout weeks of pregnancy. Pregnant women (n5196) were recruited to complete a self-report questionnaire about their experiences during pregnancy. There was no direct association between maternal attachment and BD. However, BD moderated the association between maternal attachment and weeks of pregnancy, and this association was not mediated by depression. High BD may contribute to poorer maternal health and poorer fetal outcomes through blunted growth of maternal attachment during pregnancy. Thus, high BD may be an important target for intervention in women during pregnancy. Future studies should examine longitudinal associations among these variables throughout the perinatal period.

Maternal bonding and risk of depression in late pregnancy: a survey of Italian nulliparous women

“…The first result may be understood considering these women's high level of perceived support from the partner and family, the second may reflect our selection of healthy women. Finally, according to previous studies (Honjo et al, 2003;Hart and McMahon (2006); Haedt & Keel, 2007) no relationship was found between prenatal attachment and a CES-D score P16, not supporting the moderating role of prenatal attachment on mood state at the third trimester of pregnancy in this sample. Moreover we found two new independent predictors of a CES-D score P16: a particular type of maternal bonding, affectionless control, and the history of miscarriage of the pregnant woman's mother.…”

Predictors of Maternal Fetal Attachment among Pregnant Women

“…First: Condon JT et al (1990) (29) who had studied the influence of parity on the experience of pregnancy: a comparison of first-and second-time expectant couples, in South Australia. Second: Haedt A et al (2007) (30) who had studied maternal attachment, depression, and body dissatisfaction in pregnant women in USA . Third: Sandbrook S (2009) (31) who had conducted a study titled "Love or protection?…”

Acceptance of Pregnancy

“…An extreme reaction to her changed body, such as a feeling of hatred or inability to accept the change, however, can indicate either low self-esteem or intense conflict about motherhood; such feelings are not ameliorated by a husband's reassurance of a return to normal size after birth. Haedt and Keel (2007) found that body dissatisfaction during pregnancy moderated a positive relationship between maternal attachment and weeks of pregnancy, i.e., greater gestational age predicted greater maternal attachment for women who reported low or moderate body dissatisfaction, but in women with high body dissatisfaction the association between maternal attachment and weeks gestation was lower. These researchers also found that body mass index correlated positively with maternal-fetal attachment, and suggested that high body dissatisfaction may contribute to poorer maternal health and poorer fetal outcomes through blunted growth of maternal attachment during pregnancy.…”

“…There is a relationship between the way a woman thinks about her body and her attitude toward pregnancy (McConnell & Daston, 1961) and attachment to the fetus (Haedt & Keel, 2007), and later to toddler attachment security (Ipsa, Sable, Porter, & Csizmadia, 2007). In general, women who accepted their pregnancies were little troubled by their altered state; they tended to accept their larger size.…”