A qualitative investigation into the pregnancy experiences and childbirth expectations of Australian fathers-to-be
Author(s)
Fenwick, Jennifer
Bayes, Sara
Johansson, Margareta
Griffith University Author(s)
Year published
2012
Metadata
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Aim To explore and describe men's experiences of pregnancy and childbirth expectations. Background There remains limited work exploring expectant father's perspectives. Design Qualitative descriptive design. Twelve Australian expectant fathers participated in between 1 and 2 interviews during pregnancy and 1 after childbirth (32 in total). Six fathers also chose to submit a number of diary entries via e-mail. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data set. Findings Five themes emerged from the data. The themes pregnancy news: heralds profound changeadjusting to pregnancy, and birth looming described how ...
View more >Aim To explore and describe men's experiences of pregnancy and childbirth expectations. Background There remains limited work exploring expectant father's perspectives. Design Qualitative descriptive design. Twelve Australian expectant fathers participated in between 1 and 2 interviews during pregnancy and 1 after childbirth (32 in total). Six fathers also chose to submit a number of diary entries via e-mail. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data set. Findings Five themes emerged from the data. The themes pregnancy news: heralds profound changeadjusting to pregnancy, and birth looming described how men processed the news of pregnancy, worked to accept their changed circumstances and negotiated the final week of the pregnancy. A fourth theme, labelled Feelingsidelined, outlined men's experiences of antenatal care and their feeling of isolation as a result of largely feeling ignored by health care professionals. The fifth theme represents men's childbirth expectations. Conclusion Adjusting to the news of a pregnancy was a potentially unsettling time for an expectant father that was often associated with increased apprehension and anxiety. Regardless of whether they were a first or once again father most men engaged in a level of emotional work to come to terms with and accept the pregnancy. Understanding men's antenatal experiences and anxieties is an important step in the development of preventative paternal perinatal mental health measures. The significance of this work is situated within the reality that men's wellbeing is associated with maternal psychological well-being, positive peri-natal experiences and child development.
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View more >Aim To explore and describe men's experiences of pregnancy and childbirth expectations. Background There remains limited work exploring expectant father's perspectives. Design Qualitative descriptive design. Twelve Australian expectant fathers participated in between 1 and 2 interviews during pregnancy and 1 after childbirth (32 in total). Six fathers also chose to submit a number of diary entries via e-mail. Thematic analysis was used to analyse the data set. Findings Five themes emerged from the data. The themes pregnancy news: heralds profound changeadjusting to pregnancy, and birth looming described how men processed the news of pregnancy, worked to accept their changed circumstances and negotiated the final week of the pregnancy. A fourth theme, labelled Feelingsidelined, outlined men's experiences of antenatal care and their feeling of isolation as a result of largely feeling ignored by health care professionals. The fifth theme represents men's childbirth expectations. Conclusion Adjusting to the news of a pregnancy was a potentially unsettling time for an expectant father that was often associated with increased apprehension and anxiety. Regardless of whether they were a first or once again father most men engaged in a level of emotional work to come to terms with and accept the pregnancy. Understanding men's antenatal experiences and anxieties is an important step in the development of preventative paternal perinatal mental health measures. The significance of this work is situated within the reality that men's wellbeing is associated with maternal psychological well-being, positive peri-natal experiences and child development.
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Journal Title
Sexual & Reproductive Healthcare
Volume
3
Issue
1
Subject
Midwifery
Paediatrics and Reproductive Medicine