A Stressful Bun in the Oven: An Exploration of Perinatal Stress, Self-Efficacy, and Cognitive Development

• In Event: Poster Session 03
  In Poster Session: PS 03 Topic - Family Context & Processes

Abstract

Background. The transition to parenthood is a time of great change for women. During the period ranging from 1 year prior to birth through 1 month after birth, called the perinatal period, women can experience a wide range of stressors. Perinatal stress has been linked to a variety of child outcomes, including poor cognitive development (Buitelaar et al., 2003). Research also suggests that perinatal stress may compromise aspects of parenting (Stein et al., 2014). One area related to parenting that has not been explored is self-efficacy (SE) beliefs. Maternal SE beliefs is defined as a mother’s perceived competence and ability to positively influence the behavior and development of her child (Coleman & Karraker, 2003). The association between perinatal stress and SE has been established in a preliminary study completed with these data. To begin to address gaps in our understanding of how perinatal stress is related to children’s cognitive development, we used variables known to be markers of stress to investigate whether perinatal stress is associated with cognitive development through SE beliefs.

Procedures. Data from Phase I of The National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (NICHD) Study of Early Child Care and Youth Development (SECCYD), a comprehensive, longitudinal study on various aspects of children’s development, was used for this study. The dataset includes a sample of 1,364 children and their families from 10 locations across the United States. Mothers’ reports of their perinatal stress variables were collected when the study child was first born at a hospital recruitment visit and at a 1-month home visit. When children were 6 months old, maternal reports of SE were gathered. Cognitive development was assessed when children were 24 months old. A perinatal risk index was created by dichotomizing each stress variable and summing the dichotomies; as such, the higher the risk index, the more stress a mother reported experiencing perinatally. Multiple regression was used to examine the mediating role of SE beliefs in the association between perinatal stress and cognitive development at 24-months.

Results and Discussion. Perinatal stress was negatively associated with cognitive development (B=-1.47, p<.001). Women who experienced more stress in the perinatal period had children with poorer cognitive development at 24-months. SE was also negatively associated with cognitive development (B=-.115, p<.01) such that the more concerns a mother reported in her SE beliefs at 6-months, the poorer her child’s cognitive development at 24-months. The direct effects from SE beliefs to cognitive development became non-significant after controlling for a range of demographic variables (i.e., child sex, maternal race/ethnicity, and income). This will be discussed in more detail during the presentation. Overall, these findings begin to provide evidence for the importance of SE in the relationship between perinatal stress and cognitive development in early childhood. The implications of these findings for practice will be discussed as they can inform practice to support mothers who may experience stressful events during the transition to parenthood.

Authors

• Erica Smolinski, University of Georgia
  Presenting Author

• Kristen L Bub, University of Georgia
  Non-Presenting Author