Self-compassion predicts less fear of childbirth in childless women: the mediating role of birth beliefs

Abstract

Objective

Women can have fear of childbirth (FOC) in advance of their first pregnancy and such fear can have implications for reproductive and eventual childbirth choices. This study aims to further our understanding of the role of self-compassion in FOC in young childless women, including possible pathways through which self-compassion might relate to less FOC: through natural and medical birth beliefs.

Design and Main Outcome Measures

In this correlational study, 316 young childless Australian women completed measures of self-compassion, natural and medical birth beliefs, and FOC.

Results

Self-compassion predicted less FOC, and although self-compassion as a total score did not relate to natural birth beliefs, it did relate to lower scores on medical birth beliefs. The indirect effect through medical birth beliefs was supported; greater self-compassion predicted lower scores on medical birth beliefs, which in turn predicted less FOC.

Conclusions

The findings, although cross-sectional, support the study of self-compassion in FOC, which is in part because self-compassion predicts less medical birth beliefs. With further research, self-compassion training might be incorporated into public health initiatives targeting FOC in young childless women.

Keywords:

• Fear of childbirth
• birth beliefs
• natural birth beliefs
• medical birth beliefs
• self-compassion
• women

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the authors.

Data availability

Data from this study are available from the first author upon reasonable request.