Process changes in a first pregnancy : the roles of quickening and marital satisfaction

Psychological research has traditionally described pregnancy as a relatively static, isolated and crisis evoking life event. Attitudes and experiences that identify problems of pregnancy--from both a medical and psychological viewpoint--are quite evident in the literature. Recently a number of authors have responded to this conceptualization of pregnancy as crisis, and have begun to investigate the process changes that characterize a woman's experience during pregnancy. Issues related to a woman's sense of self during pregnancy, her feelings about her unborn baby and her attitudes toward being pregnant are examined within the context of normal adult development and adaptive processes.

The current study examined women's experience of a first pregnancy from this perspective, and specifically addressed the roles played by quickening--the sensation of fetal movement--and marital satisfaction on a pregnant woman's attitudes about pregnancy and her feelings of attachment toward her unborn baby. Forty women were administered The Maternal Attitudes to Pregnancy Instrument, The Maternal-Fetal Attachment Scale, The Physical Symptom Subscale, and The Marital Satisfaction and the Life Cycle Questionnaire at three different times during the middle stage of their pregnancies. Quickening occurred for each woman at some point during this period. An analysis of variance technique was used to measure the effect of quickening on the constructs measured by each of these scales, and a correlation matrix was used to assess the extent of relationship between Marital Satisfaction scores and scores on the Attitudes to Pregnancy Instrument and Maternal Fetal Attachment Scale. Results indicated that quickening plays a significant role in enhancing maternal fetal attachment, maternal sense of well being, and feelings for the unborn baby. The passage of time alone was revealed to foster the development of positive attitudes toward pregnancy, and to play a role in aspects of the maternal-fetal relationship. A positive correlation between marital satisfaction, attitudes toward pregnancy and maternal fetal attachment was demonstrated. Further work using a more heterogeneous sample, as well as including data about fathers' experiences, was suggested.