Chitraladda Wongwiggan. The influence of selected factors self-esteem and social support on maternal grief after pregnancy loss . Master's Degree(Maternity and Newborn Nursing). Mahidol University. : Mahidol University, 2003.
The influence of selected factors self-esteem and social support on maternal grief after pregnancy loss
Abstract:
Loss of any kind is a normal life experience, but pregnancy loss, in particular,
is a primary cause of maternal grief and one which is not desired by any mother. The
purpose of this descriptive research was to study the influence of selected factors, i.e.
maternal age, gestational age and previous pregnancy loss, self-esteem and social
support on maternal grief. Purposive sampling was used to select 100 mothers and who
were admitted to the high-risk ward in Ramathibodi hospital, Bangkok, Thailand after
pregnancy loss. Data were collected for 4 months from March to June 2000 using selfadministered
questionnaires, namely the Demographic Questionnaire, the Rosenberg
Self-esteem Scale (Suphannee Soomlek, B.E. 2538), the Social Support Questionnaire
(Chularuk Kaveevivitchai, B.E. 2536) and the Perinatal Grief Scale (Gahnyarak
Nguycharoen, B.E. 2541). Data were analyze using SPSS/FW version 9.05.
The results of this study revealed that the subjects had a high score for selfesteem
(M = 32.49, S.D. = 4.08), a rather high score for social support (M = 46.23, S.D.
= 7.65) but only a moderate score for maternal grief (M = 80.47, S.D. = 18.01).
Gestational age and self-esteem are two factors that when combined could significantly
explain 26.4% of the variance of maternal grief (p < .01). However, social support had
only a low negative relationship with maternal grief (r = -.20, p < .05) and could not
explain maternal grief. Other factors such as maternal age and previous pregnancy loss
were not statistically correlated with maternal grief.
The results of the study clearly suggest that pregnancy loss can, indeed, lead
to maternal grief. Thus, health-care providers should better understand the effects of the
lost on the mother’s life. Before caring for the mother that had suffered from pregnancy
loss, health-care providers should assess such factors that affect maternal grief as
gestational age, self-esteem and social support. Only then can they better provide special
care to help these mothers manage throughout the grieving process.