The DOI matches its Crossref record; 39 of the 40 references it cites were found in a registry or an index.
The role of maternal self-care in new motherhood
Open accessAbstract
Objective To examine the following: (1) women's perceptions regarding the role of maternal self-care, (2) specific applications of self-care in new motherhood and (3) barriers to practising effective self-care.Design three focus groups were conducted in order to study women's perspectives regarding the key components of new motherhood.Setting Recruitment took place in Allegheny County, surrounding Pittsburgh. The focus groups were held at the University of Pittsburgh's Medical School.Participants Thirty-one adult women who had given birth in the year prior to enrollment participated in the study.Methods The focus group conversations were recorded and transcribed for purposes of qualitative analysis. Conversation related to maternal self-care, which was identified as a component of new motherhood, was grouped into one of three categories: (1) women's valuations of self-care, (2) effective applications of self-care and (3) barriers to good self-care practice.Findings Two ideologies regarding the role of self-care emerged. In one conception of effective mothering, self-care was of primary importance. On the contrary, some women associated a sometimes extreme form of self-sacrifice with new motherhood. Effective applications of self-care included taking time to exercise, allowing the infant's father to care for the child for a period of time and going out to restaurants. Barriers to good self-care practice were time, other limited resources such as money and social support and difficulty accepting help and setting boundaries.Key conclusions Additional focus groups should be conducted with the purpose of studying maternal self-care exclusively. This work is an important first step in identifying ways to help new mothers better care for themselves.
Overview
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Integrity signals
Registry
Cites
Statistics
Verification
Claims the paper makes
The claims and statistics of this paper haven’t been checked yet.
Run the check — free, no account needed. It reads the open-access text and checks the sources it cites.
Claims other papers make about this one
Each is checked against this paper’s own text: does it say what the citing paper says it does?
The source backs part of the claim, not all of it — or backs it for a different population, condition or comparison.
In the citing paper
“This complex emotional experience coupled with family, societal, and cultural pressures can influence women’s functioning, leading to problems such as prioritizing child and family needs above their own self-care, values, and identity [13].”
From Motherhood and Me (Mom-Me): The Development of an Acceptance-Based Group for Women with Postpartum Mood and Anxiety Symptoms (2022) · cites this paper as [13]
Experimental — accuracy not yet measured
Self-check
Percentages, sums and reported differences re-computed from the paper’s own numbers.
The self-check needs the paper’s full text.
Citations
Cites
The CES-D Scale: A Self-Report Depression Scale for Research in the General Population
Radloff, L. S. (1977) · Applied Psychological Measurement · doi:10.1177/014662167700100306 · Cited by 53,267
Morgan, D. (1998) · Sage eBooks · doi:10.4135/9781483328164 · Cited by 1,803
Contemporary theories about the family
Burr, W. R. (1979) · Macmillan , Collier-Macmillan eBooks · Cited by 1,657
Maternal Care and Mental Health
(1952) · Archives of Disease in Childhood · doi:10.1136/adc.27.132.205 · Cited by 1,233
Becoming a Mother Versus Maternal Role Attainment
Mercer, R. T. (2004) · Journal of Nursing Scholarship · doi:10.1111/j.1547-5069.2004.04042.x · Cited by 953
Analyzing and Reporting Focus Group Results
Krueger, R. A. (1997) · Medical Entomology and Zoology · Cited by 918
A Meta-Analysis of Predictors of Postpartum Depression
Beck, C. T. (1996) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-199609000-00008 · Cited by 440
Maternal Depressive Symptoms at 2 to 4 Months Post Partum and Early Parenting Practices
McLearn, K. T., Minkovitz, C. S., Strobino, D. M., Marks, E., & Hou, W. (2006) · Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine · doi:10.1001/archpedi.160.3.279 · Cited by 319
Psychological changes accompanying pregnancy and motherhood.
Leifer, M. (1977) · PubMed · Cited by 316
Transition to Parenthood: Problems and Gratifications
Russell, C. S. (1974) · Journal of Marriage and the Family · doi:10.2307/351155 · Cited by 268
The Process of Maternal Role Attainment over the First Year
MERCER, R. T. (1985) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-198507000-00002 · Cited by 258 · cited 3×
“, 1986), infant care (Froman and Owen, 1989), feelings towards one’s infant (Leifer, 1977), maternal gratification (Russell, 1974; Mercer, 1985) and social function (O’Hara et al.”
BackgroundATTAINMENT OF THE MATERNAL ROLE
Rubin, R. (1967) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-196701630-00006 · Cited by 233
Symbolic interaction and the family
Burr, W. R., Leigh, G. K., Day, R. D., & Constantine, J. M. (1979) · Cited by 216
Parenting Sense of Competence Scale
Johnston, C., & Mash, E. J. (1989) · PsycTESTS Dataset · doi:10.1037/t01311-000 · Cited by 212
The Impact of Postpartum Depression on Mothering
Logsdon, M. C., Wisner, K. L., & Pinto, M. D. (2006) · Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing · doi:10.1111/j.1552-6909.2006.00087.x · Cited by 210
A theoretical framework for studying factors that impact on the maternal role.
Mercer, R. T. (1981) · PubMed · Cited by 159
Development of the Barkin Index of Maternal Functioning.
Barkin, J. L., Wisner, K. L., Bromberger, J. T., Beach, S. R., Terry, M. A., & Wisniewski, S. R. (2010) · Journal of Women's Health · doi:10.1089/jwh.2009.1893 · Cited by 132
Development of the inventory of functional status after childbirth
Fawcett, J., Tulman, L. J., & Myers, S. (1988) · Journal of Nurse-Midwifery · doi:10.1016/0091-2182(88)90080-8 · Cited by 131
A Theoretical Framework for Studying Factors that Impact on the Maternal Role
Mercer, R. T. (1981) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-198103000-00003 · Cited by 126
Mothering Behavior and Maternal Role Attainment During the Postpartum Period
Walker, L. O., CRAIN, H., & THOMPSON, E. (1986) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-198611000-00010 · Cited by 124
ATTAINMENT OF THE MATERNAL ROLE
Rubin, R. (1967) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-196716040-00012 · Cited by 120
Changes in Functional Status After Childbirth
Tulman, L. J., Fawcett, J., GROBLEWSKI, L., & SILVERMAN, L. (1990) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-199003000-00002 · Cited by 112
Functional Status Outcomes in Mothers With and Without Postpartum Depression
Posmontier, B. (2008) · Journal of Midwifery & Women's Health · doi:10.1016/j.jmwh.2008.02.016 · Cited by 97
Maternal Role Attainment and Identity in the Postpartum Period
Walker, L. O., CRAIN, H., & THOMPSON, E. (1986) · Nursing Research · doi:10.1097/00006199-198603000-00002 · Cited by 90
What Happens When Fatigue Lingers for 18 Months After Delivery?
Parks, P. L., Lenz Elizabeth, R., Milligan, R. A., & Hae-Ra, H. (1999) · Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing · doi:10.1111/j.1552-6909.1999.tb01969.x · Cited by 86
Contemporary Mothering in a Diverse Society
Koniak‐Griffin, D., Logsdon, M. C., Hines-Martin, V. P., & Turner-Pluta, C. (2006) · Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing · doi:10.1111/j.1552-6909.2006.00089.x · Cited by 82
Family dynamics of postnatally depressed mothers – discrepancy between expectations and reality
Tammentie, T., Paavilainen, E., Åstedt-Kurki, P. M., & Tarkka, M. (2003) · Journal of Clinical Nursing · doi:10.1046/j.1365-2702.2003.00824.x · Cited by 72
Froman, R. D., & Owen, S. V. (1989) · Research and theory for nursing practice · doi:10.1891/0889-7182.3.3.199 · Cited by 71
How motherhood changes life a discourse analytic study with mothers of young children
Weaver, J., & Ussher, J. M. (1997) · Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology · doi:10.1080/02646839708404533 · Cited by 71
Assessment of Functioning in New Mothers
Barkin, J. L., Wisner, K. L., Bromberger, J. T., Beach, S. R., & Wisniewski, S. R. (2010) · Journal of Women s Health · doi:10.1089/jwh.2009.1864 · Cited by 62
Persevering Through Postpartum Fatigue
Runquist, J. J. (2007) · Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing · doi:10.1111/j.1552-6909.2006.00116.x · Cited by 58
Clinical Assessment of Mothering During Infancy
Fowles, E. R., & Horowitz, J. A. (2006) · Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing · doi:10.1111/j.1552-6909.2006.00090.x · Cited by 49
Symptoms of Depression and Related Factors among Spanish University Students
Vázquez, F., & Blanco, V. (2006) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.2466/pr0.99.2.583-590 · Cited by 46
Functional Status After Childbirth in an Australian Sample
McVeigh, C. A. (1998) · Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic & Neonatal Nursing · doi:10.1111/j.1552-6909.1998.tb02664.x · Cited by 39
Adjustment in childbearing women: The Postpartum Adjustment Questionnaire.
O’Hara, M. W., Hoffman, J. G., Philipps, L. H. C., & Wright, E. J. (1992) · Psychological Assessment · doi:10.1037/1040-3590.4.2.160 · Cited by 36
Mothers' experiences of postnatal depression: an interpretative phenomenological analysis.
Hall, P. L. (2006) · PubMed · Cited by 34
Anxiety and functional status after childbirth
McVeigh, C. A. (2000) · Australian College of Midwives Incorporated Journal · doi:10.1016/s1031-170x(00)80036-7 · Cited by 29
Logsdon, M. C., Hines-Martin, V. P., & Rakestraw, V. (2009) · Issues in Mental Health Nursing · doi:10.1080/01612840902722187 · Cited by 25
SYMPTOMS OF DEPRESSION AND RELATED FACTORS AMONG SPANISH UNIVERSITY STUDENTS
Vázquez, F. L. (2006) · Psychological Reports · doi:10.2466/pr0.99.6.583-590 · Cited by 15
Cited by
Sorted by citations
The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit: Environmental Stressors and Supports
Williams, K., Patel, K., Stausmire, J. M., Bridges, C. C., Mathis, M. W., & Barkin, J. L. (2018) · International Journal of Environmental Research and Public Health · doi:10.3390/ijerph15010060 · Cited by 122
First-time mothers’ perceptions of social support: Recommendations for best practice
De Sousa Machado, T., Chur-Hansen, A., & Due, C. (2020) · Health Psychology Open · doi:10.1177/2055102919898611 · Cited by 118
Law, K. H., Dimmock, J. A., Guelfi, K. J., Nguyen, T., Gucciardi, D. F., & Jackson, B. (2018) · Applied Psychology Health and Well-Being · doi:10.1111/aphw.12147 · Cited by 95
Fathi, F., Mohammad‐Alizadeh‐Charandabi, S., & Mirghafourvand, M. (2017) · Women & Health · doi:10.1080/03630242.2017.1292340 · Cited by 75
Kurth, E., Krähenbühl, K., Eicher, M., Rodmann, S., Fölmli, L., Conzelmann, C., & Zemp, E. (2016) · BMC Health Services Research · doi:10.1186/s12913-016-1300-2 · Cited by 68
Metadata
- Authors
- Barkin, J. L., & Wisner, K. L.
- Affiliations
- Mercer University (US)
- Northwestern University (US)
- Corresponding author
- Barkin, Jennifer L.
- Venue
- Midwifery
- Publisher
- Elsevier BV
- Published
- 2013-09
- Volume
- 29
- Issue
- 9
- Pages
- 1050-1055
- ISSN
- 0266-6138 (ISSN-L)
- PMC
- PMC7081756
- OpenAlex
- W2082761229
- Cited by
- 114
- References
- 40
- Citations by year
- 2026: 11 · 2025: 10 · 2024: 14 · 2023: 10 · 2022: 14 · 2021: 6 · 2020: 10 · 2019: 6 · 2018: 9 · 2017: 6 · 2016: 9 · 2015: 5 · 2014: 3 · 2013: 1
- FWCI
- 6.12
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- green
- www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov
- Locations
- Midwifery (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Europe PMC (PubMed Central) (acceptedVersion)
- PubMed Central (acceptedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institute of Mental Health (R01MH060335)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Public Health, Environmental and Occupational Health › Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum
- Social Sciences › Sociology and Political Science › Work-Family Balance Challenges
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Pediatrics, Perinatology and Child Health › Maternal and Neonatal Healthcare
- Keywords
- maternal self-care, new motherhood, postpartum women, women's perceptions, barriers to self-care, self-sacrifice, social support, time constraints, help-seeking, boundary setting, physical activity, father involvement
- MeSH terms
- Adult, Family Relations, Female, Health Education, Humans, Male, Paternal Behavior, Self Care, Social Support, Socioeconomic Factors, United States, Women's Health, Focus Groups, Qualitative Research, Postpartum Period
About these checks
Registry, retraction, Cites and statistics results are computed, not judged, with one exception: a printed reference that no index lists is read once by a model before it counts as a citation error. Claims are extracted by a model and kept only when their quote appears verbatim in the text; each cited source is then checked, with a model’s help, for whether it says what the claim relies on. Those verdicts can be wrong — read the claim’s quote and the cited source before relying on one.
Statistics and arithmetic are recomputed, not judged.
Confidence bands are shown only for fields calibrated on our annotated test set. None is calibrated yet, so no band is shown.
What counts as a claim ›How we measure confidence ›How we check this ›
Are you an author, or do you see a problem with this page? Request a review