Effects of a Maternal Role Adjustment Program on First-time Mothers

• Main Authors: Su Jeong Kim (Author), Ji Min Seo (Author)
• Format: Book
• Published: Korean Society of Women Health Nursing, 2018-09-01T00:00:00Z.
• Subjects: article
• Online Access: Connect to this object online.
• Notes: 2287-1640; 10.4069/kjwhn.2018.24.3.322
• Keywords: maternal behavior; mother-child interaction; postpartum depression; psychological adaptation; Nursing; RT1-120
• Source: Korean Journal of Women Health Nursing, Vol 24, Iss 3, Pp 322-332 (2018)

PURPOSE: To investigate the effect of a maternal role adjustment program on first-time mothers. METHODS: The research was quasi-experimental with a non-equivalent control group non-synchronized design. Participants were first-time mothers admitted to two postpartum clinics at women's hospitals. The experimental group had 38 mothers and the control group had 35 mothers. A maternal role adjustment program was applied individually to the experimental group between the 1st and 2nd weeks after childbirth. Assessing Adaptation to Motherhood, Semantic Differential Scale-Myself as Mother, and Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale were used to measure effects of the program. A pre-test was conducted in the 1st week after childbirth while post-tests were conducted in the 4th and 6th weeks. Data were analyzed with χ2 test, Fisher's exact test, t-test, and repeated measures ANOVA using SPSS 24.0. RESULTS: Maternal role adjustment (F=6.17, p=.015) and maternal identity (F=6.63, p=.012) were significantly increased in the experimental group compared to those in the control group. However, the difference in postpartum depression (F=1.11, p=.335) was not statistically significant between the two groups. CONCLUSION: The maternal role adjustment program can be utilized as an effective nursing intervention program to enhance maternal role adjustment and maternal identity for first-time mothers.