Psychosocial Adaptation to Pregnancy

Book excerpt: presented in the Introduction (Chapter 1). The focus of Chapter 1 is twofold: (1) to present the research foundations for the psychophysiological correlates of prenatal psychosocial adaptation and the seven prenatal personality dimensions with progress in labor and birth outcomes, and particularly (2) to present the theory underlying the seven dimensions of prenatal psychosocial adaptation, which are further analyzed in the following seven chapters. Chapters 2–8 present a content analysis of the interview responses to the seven significant prenatal personality dimensions that are predictive of pregnancy adap- tion, progress in labor, birth outcomes, and postpartum maternal psychosocial adaptation, and they include: (1) Acceptance of Pregnancy, (2) Identification with a Motherhood Role, (3) Relationship with Mother, (4) Relationship with Husband, (5) Preparation for Labor, (6) (Prenatal) Fear of Pain, Helplessness, and Loss of Control in Labor, and (7) (Prenatal) Fear of Loss of Self-Esteem in Labor. There is no other comparable comprehensive, in-depth, prenatal personality research or empirical and content analysis of pregnancy-specific dimensions of maternal psychosocial adaptation to pregnancy.