Predictors of maternal responsiveness.
OBJECTIVE
To explore maternal responsiveness in the first 2 to 4 months after delivery and to evaluate potential predictors of maternal responsiveness, including infant feeding, maternal characteristics, and demographic factors such as age, socioeconomic status, and educational level.


METHODS
A cross-sectional survey design was used to assess the variables of maternal responsiveness, feeding patterns, and maternal characteristics in a convenience sample of 177 mothers in the first 2 to 4 months after delivery. The 60-item self-report instrument included scales to measure maternal responsiveness, self-esteem, and satisfaction with life as well as infant feeding questions and sociodemographic items. An online data-collection strategy was used, resulting in participants from 41 U.S. states.


RESULTS
Multiple regression analysis showed that satisfaction with life, self-esteem, and number of children, but not breastfeeding, explained a significant portion of the variance in self-reported maternal responsiveness scores. In this analysis, sociodemographic variables such as age, education, income, and work status showed little or no relationship to maternal responsiveness scores.


CONCLUSIONS
This study provides additional information about patterns of maternal behavior in the transition to motherhood and some of the variables that influence that transition. Satisfaction with life was a new predictor of maternal responsiveness. However, with only 15% of the variance explained by the predictors in this study, a large portion of the variance in maternal responsiveness remains unexplained. Further research in this area is needed.
Drake
Emily E
EE
University of Virginia School of Nursing, Charlottesville, VA 22908-0782, USA. eje@virginia.edu
Humenick
Sharron S
SS
Amankwaa
Linda
L
Younger
Janet
J
Roux
Gayle
G
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D000704:Analysis of Variance; D001288:Attention; D001942:Breast Feeding; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D003463:Cues; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007224:Infant Care / Q000379:methods / Q000523:psychology*; D008016:Life Change Events; D016014:Linear Models; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000523:psychology*; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000193:education / Q000523:psychology* / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D015404:Nursing Methodology Research; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D020377:Self Efficacy; D012959:Socioeconomic Factors; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014481:United States