The Relationship of Maternal Age, Quickening, and Physical Symptoms of Pregnancy to the Development of Maternal‐Fetal Attachment

Abstract

In a study of maternal-fetal attachment we explored three variables that could influence such attachment: maternal age, the experience of quickening, and the physical symptoms of pregnancy. A convenience sample of 80 pregnant women filled out the Cranley maternal-fetal attachment scale and the pregnancy symptoms checklist. Maternal age and physical symptoms were not found to be significantly correlated to maternal-fetal attachment, but quickening, as well as the degree and frequency of fetal movement, were correlated, at the P less than or equal to 0.0001 level. Income, ultrasound, and planning of pregnancy were also found to be significantly related to maternal-fetal attachment.