Can Women’s Cognitive Appraisals Be Registered throughout Childbirth?

The aims of the present study were: (a) to examine whether it was possible to measure women’s cognitive appraisals hourly during the whole process of labor and delivery, and (b) to explore how the appraisals varied during labor. Measurements from 12 nulliparous women are presented. The findings indicate that it is possible to study psychological appraisals directly, in detail and continuously during the process of labor and delivery. The women’s cognitive appraisals varied throughout labor both per individual woman and between the participating women.

[1]  W. Graham,et al.  Can anxiety in pregnant women be measured using the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory. , 1998, Midwifery.

[2]  K. Wijma,et al.  Fear of childbirth during pregnancy may increase the risk of emergency cesarean section , 1998, Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica.

[3]  K. Wijma,et al.  Psychometric aspects of the W-DEQ; a new questionnaire for the measurement of fear of childbirth. , 1998, Journal of psychosomatic obstetrics and gynaecology.

[4]  U. Ulmsten,et al.  Myometrial steroid concentration and oxytocin receptor density in parturient women at term , 1996, Steroids.

[5]  P. Jouppila,et al.  The intensity of labor pain in grand multiparas , 1996, Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica.

[6]  H. Leitich,et al.  Some aspects on the mechanism of human labor and delivery. , 1995, European journal of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology.

[7]  P. Brownridge,et al.  The nature and consequences of childbirth pain. , 1995, European journal of obstetrics, gynecology, and reproductive biology.

[8]  M. Taverne.  Physiology of parturition , 1992 .

[9]  S. Thornton,et al.  Plasma oxytocin during the first and second stages of spontaneous human labour. , 1992, Acta endocrinologica.

[10]  N. Lowe.  Differences in first and second stage labor pain between nulliparous and multiparous women , 1992 .

[11]  R. Romero,et al.  Oxytocin secretion and human parturition: pulse frequency and duration increase during spontaneous labor in women. , 1991, American journal of obstetrics and gynecology.

[12]  D. Bakal,et al.  Perinatal predictors of pain and distress during labor. , 1990, Birth.

[13]  D. Bakal,et al.  Relationships between pain, cognitive activity and epidural analgesia during labor , 1990, Pain.

[14]  F. Gaston‐Johansson,et al.  Do Primiparas and Multiparas Have Realistic Expectats of Labor , 1990, Acta obstetricia et gynecologica Scandinavica.

[15]  A. Kurtz,et al.  Characteristics of labor pain at two stages of cervical dilation , 1989, Pain.

[16]  N. Lowe.  Explaining the pain of active labor: the importance of maternal confidence. , 1989, Research in nursing & health.

[17]  J. Stronge,et al.  The clinical significance of pain and cognitive activity in latent labor. , 1989, Obstetrics and gynecology.

[18]  F. Gaston‐Johansson,et al.  Progression of Labor Pain In Primiparas and Multiparas , 1988, Nursing research.

[19]  N. Lowe.  Individual variation in childbirth pain , 1987 .

[20]  R. Lederman,et al.  Anxiety and epinephrine in multiparous women in labor: relationship to duration of labor and fetal heart rate pattern. , 1986, American journal of obstetrics and gynecology.

[21]  A. Fuchs,et al.  Endocrinology of human parturition: a review , 1984, British journal of obstetrics and gynaecology.

[22]  R. Melzack,et al.  Severity of labour pain: influence of physical as well as psychologic variables. , 1984, Canadian Medical Association journal.

[23]  R. Lederman,et al.  The relationship of maternal anxiety, plasma catecholamines, and plasma cortisol to progress in labor. , 1978, American journal of obstetrics and gynecology.

[24]  L. Hefferman.  Physiology of parturition. , 1946, Medical world.