The Relationship Between COVID-19 Fear and Prenatal Attachment of Pregnant Women in the Pandemic.

Abstract

The aim of this study was to determine the relationship between COVID-19 fear and the prenatal attachment of pregnant women in the pandemic. The sample of this cross-sectional and descriptive study consisted of 377 participants aged 18-45. The study was conducted from August to December 2021 in the east of Turkey. The data were collected using the SocioDemographic Questionnaire, Fear of COVID-19 Scale, and Prenatal Attachment İnventory. The mean Prenatal Attachment İnventory total score was 58.20 ± 10.61. The mean Fear of COVID-19 Scale total score of the women in the study was 24.43 ± 6.61. In this study, significant differences in prenatal attachment were observed for age, education, number of pregnancies, pregnancy week, and number of children. Moreover, the fear of COVİD-19 was detected as a statistically significant difference between the COVID-19 status and having several children (p < .05). There was a link found between fear of COVID-19 and prenatal attachment in pregnant women. Health centers were recommended to provide training and support programs to solve the fear caused by COVID-19 and improve women's prenatal attachment.