Maternal mental health over the course of 4 years following childbirth: The contribution of birth circumstances and psycho-social factors.

The aim of this study is to identify mothers at risk for poorer maternal mental health (MMH) 1 month post-partum and to determine changes in MMH over 4 years in relation to birth circumstances (singleton/twins, full-term/pre-term infant/s, first/non-first child), internal resources (adult attachment styles), and external resources (marital quality and maternal grandmother's support) at 1 month post-partum. The mediating effects of external resources were also investigated. Questionnaires were completed between 2001 and 2012 by 561 Israeli mothers. Shortly after birth, mothers at risk for poorer MMH were those who gave birth prematurely or were characterized by insecure attachment styles, lower marital quality, younger age, or a higher level of education. The mothers with a good prognosis for improvement in MMH were those who had given birth prematurely or were younger, more highly educated, or multiparous. Women with insecure attachment or lower marital quality reported lower MMH one month after delivery that did not improve over time, and the MMH of older or less educated mothers deteriorated over time. Marital quality mitigated or exacerbated the effects of birth circumstances and insecure attachment style on MMH shortly after giving birth. Findings suggested that early interventions may be important to help identify women at risk.

Dyadic Transition to Parenthood: A Longitudinal Assessment of Personal Growth among Parents of Pre- and Full-term Infants.

This study examined the contribution of birth circumstances (premature and full-term birth) and individual and spousal factors (attachment orientations, parental self-efficacy and perceived infant temperament), measured 1 month post-partum, to the personal growth of first-time parents (n = 121) 1 and 5 months post-partum. The study overcame the limitations of prior research by accurately measuring actor effects while controlling for and assessing partner effects, by applying the actor-partner interdependence model. The findings confirm that becoming a parent, under normative and stressful circumstances, can lead to personal growth and parents of premature babies experience higher levels of growth than parents of full terms. Moreover, 1 month post-partum, actor effects were found for higher attachment anxiety and higher parental self-efficacy. Furthermore, personal growth at 1 month post-partum was found to be the strongest predictor of personal growth 5 months after childbirth. Five months post-partum, a positive partner effect was found for parental self-efficacy. Mothers reported higher growth than fathers only 5 months after the birth. It seems time plays an important role as to which variables contribute to personal growth. In the early stages of parenthood, personal growth is mostly an individual experience. Theoretical and clinical implications are discussed. Copyright © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.