PROFILES OF PSYCHOLOGICAL DISTRESS IN EXPECTANT MOTHERS

In the last recent years psychological research on women’s mental health during the transition to parenthood has shifted the focus from the postpartum period to the perinatal period. Specifically, several studies have investigated the connection among mood disorders, anxiety disorders and fear of childbirth during pregnancy with inconsistent results. The present study aims to analyze the psychological profiles of pregnant women – based on their levels of anxiety, depression and fear of childbirth – through a cluster analysis. A sample of 255 primiparous Italian women, met between the 33rd and the 37th week of pregnancy, completed a questionnaire packet that included the following scales: Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire – version A; Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale; State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. All these variables were considered both as continuous and dichotomous variable (referring to the clinical cut-off scores). Results shown a three cluster solution: the first cluster included pregnant women characterized by a general well-being (low levels on the three variables considered); the second cluster comprised expectant mothers with high levels of state anxiety and fear of childbirth; the third cluster encompassed women characterized by an overall condition of distress (high levels of anxiety, depression, and fear). Moreover, all the women with a score of depression above the clinical cut-off belonged to this cluster. The clinical implication will be discussed during the congress.