Maternal Chronological Age, Prenatal and Perinatal History, Social Support, and Parenting of Infants

Abstract

The role of maternal chronological age in prenatal and perinatal history, social support, and parenting practices of new mothers (N = 335) was examined. Primiparas of 5-month-old infants ranged in age from 13 to 42 years. Age effects were zero, linear, and nonlinear. Nonlinear age effects were significantly associated up to a certain age with little or no association afterward; by spline regression, estimated points at which the slope of the regression line changed were 25 years for prenatal and perinatal history, 31 years for social supports, and 27 years for parenting practices. Given the expanding age range of first-time parents, these findings underscore the importance of incorporating maternal age as a factor in studies of parenting and child development. KeywordsMaternal age; maternal practices; parenting; social support When angels inform the 99-year-old Abraham that his 90-year-old wife will soon give birth, Sarah overhears and "laughed to herself saying, 'After I have grown old, and my husband is old, shall I have pleasure.'" (Genesis 18:12) Contemporary Demographic Trends in Maternal AgeThe mean age for first births in the United States is 25.1 years and rising . This overall gradient reflects two trend lines. First, the rate of teenage motherhood is waning slightly, although the United States has the highest percentage of teen (15-19) births among industrialized nations (421,626 in 2003;Hamilton, Martin, & Sutton, 2004). Second, waxing numbers of older adult women are delaying conception, thus expanding the age range for first-time parenthood (Hamilton et al., 2004). According to the National Vital Statistics Reports , birth rates for women 25-39 increased by about 1-2% each year from 1991 to 2001, and births to women aged 35-39 and 40-44 years reached record highs in 2002, rising 31% and 43%, respectively, since 1990. HHS Public Access Author Manuscript Author ManuscriptAuthor Manuscript Author ManuscriptThese demographic changes are ascribable to several factors. An array of youth sex education programs that stress both abstinence and contraception, welfare reform, the rise of a more religious and conservative generation, and an economic climate with more opportunities for women may contribute to the slight decline in the teen birthrate (McKay & Carrns, 2004). Similarly, multiple factors operate at the other end of the age continuum. The aging of the baby boom generation translates into greater absolute numbers of older women than in previous decades (Ventura, Martin, Curtin, & Mathews, 1997). Delayed marriage, the pursuit of advanced education, careerism, and high rates of divorce all postpone childbearing (Barber, 2001), and advances in birth control and assisted reproductive technologies have made it possible to delay pregnancy (Borini et al., 2004;Golombok, 2002;Lee et al., 2004;Paulson & Sachs, 1998).These demographic trends, in turn, raise questions about what effects obtain between maternal age and central issues related to first-time parenting, viz. prenatal and perinatal statu...

Association between Mode of Delivery and Behavioral and Emotional Problems of Children up to 18 months

“…Motinos nuomonės apie kūdikio probleminį elgesį skalė (Bornstein et al, 2006 ) buvo naudota 3 ir 6 mėn. kūdikių probleminiam elgesiui vertinti.…”

“…3 ir 6 mėnesių. kūdikių probleminiam elgesiui vertinti naudota motinos nuomonės apie kūdikio probleminį elgesį skalė (Bornstein et al, 2006 ). Pusantrų metų amžiaus vaikų elgesio ir emociniai sunkumai vertinti Vaikų elgesio aprašu (CBCL/1½-5, Achenbach & Rescorla, 2000).…”

Factors that Influence Parents’ Meta-Emotion Approaches: Implications for Families

“…This may be attributed to certain factors, such as knowledge gained about parenting practices or mere experiences (Bornstein et al, 2006). However, more research is necessary to examine the role that parental education might play in which metaemotion approach parents tend to use.…”

Expectations and experiences of midlife intending mothers engaging with Assisted Reproductive Technology

“…Participants were selected because they had unifying characteristics related to the research such as having experienced ART treatment, which allowed more in-depth analysis (Patton, 1990). For some responses, results were also analysed according to gender and age because these have been identified as significant factors in the literature (Bianco, 1996;Bornstein et al, 2006;Damario et al, 1999). These groups were aged; 35-39 years and 40 years of age, and categorised as such in ANZARD data (Macaldowie et al, 2015).…”

“…Bolvin et al (2009) suggests that parenting outcomes from midlife intending mothers is not associated with poorer outcomes for children in the psychosocial context. Older mothers are thought to have better parenting practices than younger women due to their maturity, life experiences, financial and social resources, experience, resilience and understanding (Bolvin et al, 2009;Bornstein, Putnick, Joan, Suwalsky, & Motti Gini, 2006;Ferguson & Woodward, 1999;McMahon et al, 2011). Older mothers also tend to have richer and more responsive communication with their infants and toddlers based on their greater life experience in communication (Rowe, Pan, & Ayoib, 2005).…”