The role of prenatal, obstetric, and post-partum factors in the parenting stress of mothers and fathers of 9-month old infants

Abstract

Introduction: The aim of this paper was to examine the role of perinatal, obstetric and post partum factors on maternal and paternal stress. It will present the first examination of the role of prenatal, obstetric, post-partum, and demographic variables in parenting stress for mothers and fathers at 9 months.

Methods: Data from 6821 parental dyads of 9-month-old infants were extracted from the Growing Up in Ireland National Longitudinal Study of Children. Participants completed the Parental Stress Scale, the Dyadic Adjustment Scale, the Quality of Attachment Sub-scale from the Maternal and Paternal Postnatal Attachment Scales, and a single item health status question from the Short Form 12 Health Survey. Information on prenatal care, pregnancy complications, obstetric outcomes, infant health, and participant demographics were also collected. Separate hierarchical linear regressions were conducted for mothers and fathers

Results: Mothers reported higher levels of parenting stress than fathers (p < 0.001). Maternal parenting stress was predicted by attachment, own health status, average sleep, occupation, household income, and having a very rapid labor. Paternal parenting stress was predicted by attachment and own health status.

Discussion: A range of perinatal factors was associated with an increased risk of higher parenting stress at 9 months post-partum and the roles of these factors differ between mothers and fathers. These findings are important for predicting and reducing risk of parenting stress in both genders.

Keywords:

• Attachment
• obstetric outcomes
• parenting stress
• prenatal
• well-being

Acknowledgements

The authors would like to thank the Economic and Social Research Institute for facilitating use of the Growing Up in Ireland study data.

Disclosure statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest.

Current knowledge on the subject

• Extant research has identified a range of factors associated with parenting stress but findings are inconsistent.

• Few studies have examined parenting stress in mothers and fathers.

• The small number of studies examining males and females indicate that mothers report higher stress than fathers.

What this study adds

• This study provides the first examination of a broad range of perinatal factors in parenting stress of mothers and fathers.

• The findings highlight the importance of considering differences between mothers and fathers when predicting risk of parenting stress.

• The findings also point to the importance of well-being and obstetric factors when considering parenting stress.