Open AccessThe Relationship Between Maternal Self-Esteem and Maternal Attachment in Mothers of Hospitalized Premature Infants
Author(s) -
Chi-Wen Chen,
Barbara Conrad
Publication year - 2001
Publication title -
the journal of nursing research/the journal of nursing research
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.537
H-Index - 32
eISSN - 1948-965X
pISSN - 1682-3141
DOI - 10.1097/01.jnr.0000347565.84564.d2
Subject(s) - self esteem , marital status , psychology , developmental psychology , family income , scale (ratio) , internal consistency , medicine , clinical psychology , psychometrics , population , environmental health , physics , quantum mechanics , economics , economic growth
The purpose of this study was to examine the relationship between maternal self-esteem and maternal attachment in mothers of hospitalized premature infants. The research instruments administered included: a demographic sheet, the Maternal Self-Report Inventory (MSRI), Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and Leifer's How I Feel About My Baby Now Scale. Thirty-two mothers whose premature infants were medically stable and hospitalized in the NICU were studied. Two hypotheses on the positive relationships between maternal self-esteem and maternal attachment, and global self-esteem and maternal attachment could not be tested by correlational analyses due to the inadequate internal consistency of the How I Feel About My Baby Now Scale. A significant correlation was found between maternal self-esteem and global self-esteem. Thus, maternal role influenced general self-concept in mothers. In addition, it was found that there were no significant correlations between the MSRI and demographic variables, such as: maternal age, marital status, income, and educational level. Another result indicated that increased global self-esteem was correlated (p < .05) with maternal age, income, and educational level. The results of this study provide clinical nurses to pay attention not only to caregiving skills but also to the mother's appraisal of herself as a mother and attachment behaviors.