Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2021 Jun 9:14:731-741.
doi: 10.2147/PRBM.S309889. eCollection 2021.

Fear of Childbirth and Associated Risk Factors in Healthy Pregnant Women in Northwest of China: A Cross-Sectional Study

Xiaolan Zhou  1   2 , Hua Liu  2 , Xiaohong Li  2 , Shaoru Zhang  1
Affiliations

Fear of Childbirth and Associated Risk Factors in Healthy Pregnant Women in Northwest of China: A Cross-Sectional Study

Xiaolan Zhou et al. Psychol Res Behav Manag. .

Abstract

Aim: Fear of childbirth (FOC) is an extreme state of anxiety, distress and worry about childbirth. Despite its common occurrence, the prevalence and risk factors for FOC are inadequately understood in the northwestern region of China.

Purpose: This study aimed to examine the prevalence and risk factors for fear of childbirth (FOC) in a cohort of pregnant women in northwest of China.

Patients and methods: A total of 922 healthy pregnant women were included in this cross-sectional study. Participants filled out a questionnaire on socio-demographic characteristics, as well as the Childbirth Attitudes Questionnaire (CAQ), the Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support (MSPSS), the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS), and the Pregnancy Pressure Scale (PPS). Psychosocial factors were analyzed to determine their association with fear of childbirth. Optimal scale regression analysis was used to determine the risk factors associated with FOC.

Results: The mean score on the CAQ was 33.92 ± 10.17. A total of 72% of participants reported low to mild FOC. Six percent (n=51/922) and 22% (n=199/922) of pregnant women reported severe and moderate FOC, respectively. Based on optimal scaling regression analysis, the factors most strongly associated with FOC were residence, marital status, parity, gestational age, relationship with partner, pregnancy stress, social support and depressive symptoms.

Conclusion: This study indicates the high prevalence of FOC (70.3%, ranging from mild to severe) in healthy pregnant women in northwest of China. FOC showed a positive correlation with pregnancy-related stress and depressive symptoms and a negative correlation with social support. Screening for FOC and helping pregnant women identify a support system early in pregnancy could reduce a woman's stress level and severity of depression.

Keywords: depression; fear of childbirth; pregnancy stress; pregnant women; social support.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors report no conflicts of interest in this work.

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

See all "Cited by" articles

References

    1. Fenwick J, Gamble J, Nathan E, Bayes S, Hauck Y. Pre- and postpartum levels of childbirth fear and the relationship to birth outcomes in a cohort of Australian women. J Clin Nurs. 2009;18(5):667–677. doi:10.1111/j.1365-2702.2008.02568.x - DOI - PubMed
    1. Larkin P, Begley CM, Devane D. Women’s experiences of labour and birth: an evolutionary concept analysis. Midwifery. 2009;25(2):e49–e59. doi:10.1016/j.midw.2007.07.010 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Nilsson C, Lundgren I. Women’s lived experience of fear of childbirth. Midwifery. 2009;25(2):e1–e9. doi:10.1016/j.midw.2007.01.017 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Salomonsson B, Gullberg MT, Alehagen S, Wijma K. Self-efficacy beliefs and fear of childbirth in nulliparous women. J Psychosom Obstet Gynecol. 2013;34(3):116–121. doi:10.3109/0167482X.2013.824418 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Fenwick J, Toohill J, Creedy DK, Smith J, Gamble J. Sources, responses and moderators of childbirth fear in Australian women: a qualitative investigation. Midwifery. 2015;31(1):239–246. doi:10.1016/j.midw.2014.09.003 - DOI - PubMed