Abstract
Objectives
Psychological distress in pregnancy is associated with adverse postnatal outcomes. We aimed to identify how social support and women’s empowerment are associated with pregnancy-specific daily experiences among women suffering antenatal anxiety in Pakistan.
Methods
Data were collected as part of a randomized controlled trial of a psychosocial intervention for antenatal anxiety in a tertiary hospital in Pakistan. We included 594 women in early pregnancy (≤ 22 weeks) who endorsed mild to severe anxiety symptoms. Generalized linear regression models were used to analyze the associations of perceived social support and women’s empowerment in relation to pregnancy-specific daily hassles and uplifts using a culturally adapted and psychometrically validated version of the Pregnancy Experience Scale-Brief.
Results
High social support was positively associated with frequency and intensity of positive pregnancy-specific experiences (B = 0.39, 95% CI 0.23–0.54 uplifts frequency; and B = 0.17, 95% CI 0.12–0.22 uplifts intensity), and was inversely associated with frequency of negative pregnancy-specific experiences (B = − 0.44, 95% CI − 0.66, − 0.22). Women’s household empowerment was associated with greater uplifts frequency and intensity (B = 0.55, 95% CI 0.20–0.90 frequency; and B = 0.28, 95% CI 0.17–0.40 intensity). High social support and household empowerment were inversely related to PES hassle-to-uplift ratio scores.
Conclusions for Practice
Greater social support and household empowerment were associated with positive pregnancy-specific experiences in the context of antenatal anxiety in Pakistan.
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Data Availability
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Code Availability
Not applicable.
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This study was funded by the National Institutes of Mental Health, United States of America (Grant No. R01MH111859).
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AM was responsible for the original draft and supervised the data collection in the field. SP analyzed the data and drafted the results section. AR drafted the methods section. All authors SZ, JP, AZ, NA, AR and PS were involved in writing, reviewing and editing of the final draft. AM and PS conceptualized the research idea.
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1—Name of Ethics committee: IRB Human Development Research Foundation (HDRF), Pakistan. Approval number: IRB/001/2017. Date of approval: March 10, 2017. 2—Name of Ethics committee: Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health IRB. Approval number: 00007592. Date of approval: December 7, 2016.
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Malik, A., Park, S., Mumtaz, S. et al. Perceived Social Support and Women’s Empowerment and Their Associations with Pregnancy Experiences in Anxious Women: A Study from Urban Pakistan. Matern Child Health J 27, 916–925 (2023). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-023-03588-6
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10995-023-03588-6