Pre- and Postpartum Fear of Childbirth in Nulliparous and Parous Women

Zar, Margareta; Wijma, Klaas; Wijma, Barbro

doi:10.1080/02845710121310

Cited by 185 publications

(217 citation statements)

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“…Other researchers reached different outcomes. Nieminen et al (2009), Haines et al, (2011 and Loureiro (2013), found no difference between parity groups, whereas Zar et al (2001) reported childbirth fear levels slightly higher in multiparous women.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…This is shared by several other authors, specifically (Saisto et al, 2001;Zar et al, 2001;Johnson & Slade, 2002;Alipour, Lamyian, Hajizadeh, & Vafaei, 2011), who refer to the importance of childbirth education, training relaxation techniques, visiting a delivery room, and developing a childbirth plan as effective interventions to mitigate fear and anxiety.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to Fenwick et al (2013), in multiparous women, the cause of fear is often associated with a previous negative labour experience. The authors describe this as a "secondary fear" or "secondary tokophobia" (Zar, Wijma, & Wijma., 2001;Saisto et al, 2001;Hofberg, & Ward, 2003;Nilsson, Lundgren, Karlström, & Hildingsson, 2012;Fenwick et al, 2013).…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Fear of Childbirth: A Study in the North of Portugal

Prata¹,

Santos²,

Santos³

et al. 2016

European Proceedings of Social &Amp; Behavioural Sciences

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Childbirth is a universal phenomenon and a meaningful experience that has the potential to trigger developmental transitions, stress, anxiety and/or fear, which, at times, can negatively impact future childbirth experiences. An exploratory and descriptive study was conducted aiming to identify the levels of fear experienced by pregnant women associated with childbirth and their main causes. A convenience sample was selected. Data collection were carried out in an outpatient obstetric hospital in the northern region of Portugal, between July 2010 and July 2012. To evaluate the intensity of fear of childbirth a visual analogic scale of 10 points was applied. Interviews were conducted in order to identify the main causes of fear. Ethical approval and informed consent were obtained. Regarding the level of fear, the majority (98%) of pregnant women had fear of childbirth, 60.2% reported moderate fear and 28% intense fear. Anxiety, primiparity and lack of knowledge related to birthing were also found to increase the fear of childbirth. Some of the main causes of fear identified were: complications during childbirth; pain/suffering; not knowing how to cope with pain; not able to give birth; baby with malformation/disease and/or suffering. Most women feel moderate or intense fear of childbirth and this is associated to well identified causes with high impact on the woman and family. To minimize the effects of fear, an early intervention has to be considered, including childbirth education classes where nurses can address and work women's fear in order to minimize it and promote a more positive experience.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

The Fear of Childbirth: A Study in the North of Portugal

Prata¹,

Santos²,

Santos³

et al. 2016

European Proceedings of Social &Amp; Behavioural Sciences

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…Childbirth fear is reported by 2.5% -78% of pregnant women, depending on the instrument used to measure fear and the level of severity (1)(2)(3)(4)(5). Severe fear of childbirth affects 2.5% of nulliparas and 4.5% of multiparas (6) and is characterized by nightmares, physical complaints, and difficulties concentrating on work or family activities.…”

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

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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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“…Evidence suggests that fear and anxiety during pregnancy is associated with outcomes such as emergency and elective caesarean section, increased need for pain relief in labour, low birth weight infants and poorer perinatal mental health (Zar et al, 2001;Wijma et al, 2002;Dunkel Schetter & Tanner, 2012;Hall et al, 2012). There has been an increase in research into antenatal psychological techniques which aim to reduce anxiety and improve maternal satisfaction and perinatal mental health, and reduce pain, medical interventions and requests for caesarean sections (Fontein-Kuipers et al, 2014).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%