Help for mothers with infant care and household tasks: perceptions of support and stress.

Abstract

Abstract This study explored help with infant care and with household tasks from the infant's father and grandparents that mothers reported throughout their infant's first quarter‐year, the extent to which help was perceived as a support and its lack as a stressor, and the difference that maternal experience made in holding this view. Participating mothers were interviewed biweekly concerning sources of help with infant care and household tasks (received help), and kept a daily log for the first 90 days after their healthy infant's birth that included supportive (e.g., help with infant care) and stressor (e.g., lack of help with household tasks) events. Received help varied by type (infant care or household help) and by source (father or grandparent). Help with infant care was more frequent than help with household tasks, and help from fathers was more frequent than help from grandparents for all six 15‐day study periods. Lack of help was infrequently reported as a stressor, and only in the first 30 days. The discrepancy in number of mothers receiving help from fathers with infant care and household tasks and mothers perceiving help from them as supportive was significant in the last three study periods. Parity did not significantly affect either received or supportive help from fathers; however, with time fathers' supportive help with household tasks decreased. Study of mothers' expectations for help with infant care and household tasks from fathers and grandparents is needed to clarify these findings.