Mother’s perception of preterm preschoolers in a sample of Polish women

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to examine the influence of prematurity on a mother’s perception of her preschool child. Background: Several studies revealed that preterm birth, which interrupts the processes of preparation for motherhood, can contribute to a more negative view of the child, formation of maladaptive parental beliefs, and distorted or disengaged child representations. However, little is known about the impact of preterm birth and a neonate’s maturity at birth on the mother’s perception of her preschool-aged child. Methods: The study included 97 Polish mothers of preterm children and 114 mothers of full-term children, surveyed with a semi-structured interview. A child’s cognitive development was assessed as well, in order to control the results for potential influence of any developmental delay. Results: Maternal characteristics of full-term children were dominated by the offspring’s strengths. In contrast, the mothers of preterm children reported a similar number of strengths and weaknesses in their offspring. Mothers of children born between the 29th and 32nd week of gestation (n = 45) identified the smallest number of strengths in their offspring. A child’s cognitive development did not correlate with the quality of the mother’s description. Conclusions: The findings of this study confirm that the experience of premature birth still affects a mother’s perception of her child in his/her preschool years, even when the child does not experience any major developmental problems.