Development Of Maternal Identity Research Articles

Factors influencing direct breastfeeding of preterm infants in neonatal wards and the provision of breastfeeding support: a qualitative systematic review protocol

Objective: The objective of this review will be to synthesize the qualitative evidence on factors that influence direct breastfeeding of preterm infants in neonatal wards and the provision of breastfeeding support. Introduction: Breastmilk is critical for the health of preterm neonates, and infants who directly feed at the breast are more likely to receive breastmilk exclusively for longer periods. Direct breastfeeding is associated with improved maternal coping and development of maternal identity. Preterm infants are significantly less likely to breastfeed than their term counterparts. An understanding of barriers and facilitators of direct breastfeeding and breastfeeding support in neonatal wards is lacking. Inclusion criteria: The proposed qualitative systematic review will include studies using qualitative methods and mixed methods, exploring the perceptions of breastfeeding parents, neonatal health care staff, and/or support people about the barriers and facilitators to direct breastfeeding (ie, suckling breastmilk directly from the parent’s breast) among preterm infants (infants born at less than 37 weeks’ gestation) admitted to a neonatal ward. Articles written in English or French will be considered. Methods: MEDLINE (Ovid), CINAHL (EBSCOhost), Embase (Ovid), PsycINFO (Ovid), Scopus, and the Cochrane Library will be searched, with no time restrictions applied. Two independent reviewers will screen and extract data using Covidence, and a tool developed for this purpose. The findings will be coded using NVivo 15 and pooled using the meta-aggregation approach. The findings will then be mapped to specific domains of the Theoretical Domains Framework using an iteratively developed coding manual. Studies will be appraised using the JBI critical appraisal tool for qualitative research, and confidence in the overall findings will be assessed using the ConQual approach.

Developing a Maternal Identity: Theoretical, Developmental and Clinical Considerations

This paper considers maternal subjectivity and maternal identity development through our work in an urban clinical setting where women present for treatment during the perinatal period. Drawing on a rich tradition of psychoanalytic observational research and mother-infant communication research, which supported the relational turn, we aim to shift the lens from mothers as important to their baby’s development, to maternal experiences as essential. Likewise, noting that a mother cannot exist without a baby, real or imagined, we consider the role of a baby in a mother’s own development. Tracing roots of maternal subjectivity in psychoanalytic traditions, while also noting its absence, we hope to offer ways to formulate maternal identity that are clinically useful and grounded in research, and reflective of our contemporary positions. Case examples further illustrate the utility of narrative measures, including the Adult Attachment Interview, in clinical settings.

Maternal identity of women in the postpartum period

The articleprovides a theoretical analysis of the notions of “maternity”, “maternal sphe-re”, “maternal role” and “maternal identity”. The place of maternal identity in the system of a woman’s identities is determined. This article provides a brief description of the structural elements (cognitive, emotional, behavioural and axiological) of maternal identity. It also em-phasizes the signifi cance of the postpartum period in a women’s psychic life and stresses its pivotal role in the development of maternal identity. Finally, the article points out some peculiarities of maternal identity of full-term and pre-term mothers.

Practicing maternal virtues prematurely: The phenomenology of maternal identity in medically high-risk pregnancy

ABSTRACTIn this study, we examine the phenomenology of maternal identity development among U.S. women hospitalized with medically high-risk pregnancies (MHRP). We conducted 16 in-depth interviews with women and found that they drew on culturally normative notions of maternal nurture, worry, and sacrifice to construct maternal identity in the context of MHRP. Based on our findings, we suggest that MHRP shape women's sense of connection to and distinctive cognitive representations of their fetus. We conclude that hospitalization simultaneously promotes and challenges women's early maternal identifications.

Motherhood as the Vehicle for Change in Australian Adolescent Women of Preterm and Full-Term Infants

Preterm birth represents an interruption to the normal development of maternal identity and is considered a highly stressful event for adult mothers. However, no research has investigated whether or how preterm birth affects the adolescent mother’s transition to motherhood. The current study aimed to explicate the experience of being a mother for adolescent women who experienced a preterm or term birth in Australia. This Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis Study analyzed interviews with 14 primiparous, English-speaking adolescent mothers (15-19 years; 10 preterm and 4 full term) who participated in three interviews over a 12-month period. Findings suggested few differences in the experience of being a mother due to infant birth status. Instead, the experience of being a mother was fundamentally about transformations to the self. The young women constructed themselves differently as a result of being mothers. Changes included moving away from delinquent behaviors, development of internal resources, growth of a positive view of self, gaining meaning in their lives, and reconciling idealized and actual notions of self and other. This research adds to our understanding of how motherhood shapes the adolescent women’s lives, while also challenging our assumptions about the impact of preterm and full-term birth for adolescent mothers.

The Role of Peer Support in the Development of Maternal Identity for “NICU Moms”

To examine first-time neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) mothers' perceptions of the initial effect and stress of their birth experiences and hospitalizations of their infants and what facilitated or hindered the development of their maternal roles within the context of the NICU. A qualitative descriptive design. A 57-bed, tertiary NICU in Chicago. Twenty-three mothers of very low birth weight (VLBW) infants hospitalized in the NICU. Participants were a subset of a larger longitudinal mixed-method study of psychological distress in 69 mothers of VLBW infants. Mothers were interviewed using an adaptation of the Clinical Interview for Parents of High-Risk Infants (CLIP) approximately 6 weeks after the births of their infants. Data were analyzed using conventional content analysis. Mothers characterized the infants' births and hospitalizations as a time of overwhelming change culminating in a new perspective on life. Primary themes were loss, stress and anxiety, adapting, resilience, peer support, and "I'm a NICU Mom." Mothers rated peer support as the most facilitative and supportive aspect of developing the maternal role in the NICU. Peer support and role modeling by NICU-based breastfeeding peer counselors helped the mothers throughout every stage of their infants' hospitalizations, from giving them hope, to helping them begin to develop maternal identity, to providing anticipatory guidance about taking their infants home. Talking points are provided for nurses who work in NICUs without dedicated peer support to help mothers establish a healthy mother/infant relationship.

High Educational Aspirations Among Pregnant Adolescents Are Related to Pregnancy Unwantedness and Subsequent Parenting Stress and Inadequacy.

On the basis of theories of maternal identity development, role conflict, and childbearing motivation, the authors tested whether high educational aspirations among pregnant adolescents are related to the unwantedness of the pregnancy and whether pregnancy unwantedness leads to subsequent parenting stress and inadequacy. Longitudinal data from 100 first-time-pregnant, unmarried Latina adolescents (M age = 17.3 years) were analyzed. Results from structural equation path modeling confirmed these associations, with strong educational ambitions related to greater unwantedness of the pregnancy, which led to feeling trapped by parenting at 6 months postpartum, which in turn was related to unaffectionate parenting and feeling inadequate in mothering at 1 year postpartum. The potential long-term negative consequences of high educational aspirations for pregnant adolescents' adjustment to parenting are discussed.

Moms Telling Tales: Maternal Identity Development in Conversations With Their Adolescents About the Personal Past

Past-event conversation between parents and children has traditionally focused on developmental processes in children. The present study aimed to examine how maternal identity processes might unfold in past-event conversations with adolescents. Sixty-three mother–adolescent pairs completed a conversation about personal past events. The authors examined the degree to which the mother reported personal meaning and vulnerability in recounting past events. Results showed that maternal age was positively correlated with expressed personal meaning, and child age was positively correlated with maternal vulnerability and reciprocity in disclosing vulnerability. The authors discuss the results in terms of the role that these conversations may play in maternal identity development.

Pregnancy and Intimate Partner Violence: How Do Rural, Low-Income Women Cope?

We conducted 32 in-depth interviews with 20 rural, low-income, women residing in the United States who were pregnant (n = 12) or 3 months postpartum (n = 8) and had experienced intimate partner violence (IPV). Using purposive sampling and the grounded theory method, we generated a conceptual model of coping. The urge to protect the unborn baby was the primary influence for participants’ decisions about separating from or permanently leaving an abusive relationship. Implications include universal screening for IPV in child-bearing women, inquiry into maternal identity development during pregnancy, and improved resource access for rural, low-income women.

Maternal Identity Development Education on Maternity Role Attainment and My Baby Perception of Primiparas

There are no interventional study results directed at maternal identity development education, including all stages of maternity role attainment, for expectant mothers with healthy babies. This research was conducted to assess the effect of maternal identity development education on the maternity role attainment and my baby perception of primigravidas. The research was carried out by using pretest-posttest quasi-experimental model with control group. A total of 120 mothers and their babies participated in this study. In the collection of the data, Personal Information Form, Semantic Differentation Scale-Myself as Mother and My Baby and the Pharis Self-Confidence Scale were used. It was detected that the training of identification development given for the mothers increased score averages taken from the scales of Myself as Mother, My Baby and the Pharis Self-Confidence Scale; this increase was statistically significant. There was a significant positive correlation between the Pharis Self-Confidence Scale post-test score averages and scales of Myself as Mother and My Baby. Nurses should offer maternal identity development education, support the baby perception process in the early postnatal stages, and help develop the self-confidence of the mother in order for mothers to develop successful motherhood behaviors. Maternal identity development education should be routinely offered to all expectant mothers by specialized nurses, not just to primigravidas. There is a requirement for similar studies to be conducted on broader populations related to the subject.

Affirming Motherhood: Validation and Invalidation in Women’s Perinatal Hospice Narratives

Perinatal hospice is an option for women who learn during pregnancy that their fetuses are affected by terminal conditions and choose to continue their affected pregnancies. These women face emotional pain and the impending loss of their fetuses or infants. The aims of this study were to explore the experiences of perinatal hospice mothers, to gather knowledge useful to health professionals, and to guide future research. Narrative analysis was performed using the personal stories of 15 women who continued pregnancies affected by lethal fetal anomalies. The participants identified themselves as mothers and their fetuses or newborns as babies. Mothers valued caring for and interacting with their babies. Health professionals who affirmed their status as mothers, the value of their babies, and the significance of their losses were perceived as supportive. Invalidating attitudes and behavior caused significant distress among mothers. Optimal care of perinatal hospice mothers supports the development of maternal identity and contact between mothers and newborns when desired. Professionals who care for perinatal hospice mothers can affirm their motherhood through their behavior and attitudes.

Maternal identity in preterm birth.

The development of maternal identity appears to be considerably delayed in the event of preterm birth. Women with high risk pregnancies may be afforded some protection by means of adaptation prior to birth. Tactile contact appears to make the experience more real for women who are attempting to make the transition to motherhood. Even in a group of moderate risk preterm infants, the psychological challenges facing mothers experiencing neonatal intensive care are considerable. Conflicting responsibilities and time pressures contribute significantly to the stressful experience of mothers in NICU.

Labor concerns of women two months after delivery.

Women strive to incorporate their labor and delivery experiences into their self-system as they form an identity as a mother. As part of a larger study examining the development of maternal identity, women were asked to respond to a single open-ended question-"Is there anything about your labor and delivery that is still bothering you?"-to determine if women experienced any discrepancies between the expectations and realities of their births. A descriptive, qualitative design was applied to examine responses to an open-ended question from a convenience sample of 77 women from three geographically diverse Midwest hospitals who were nine weeks postpartum. Responses were subjected to content analysis to identify major categories of concerns related to labor and delivery. Women expressed positive responses, which related to who helped them in labor and to the context of the experience, and frustrations, which related to pain, negative reactions to health caregivers, lack of control, and lack of knowledge. These findings offer direction to health care professionals for making labor and childbirth a positive experience, thus easing the transition to motherhood.