Spouses’ Psychological States and Family Relations in Families with Natural and Induced Pregnancies

Abstract

Background. Psychological tension in the family, along with stress and mental and physical illness, are linked to the reproductive health of parents, as well as to the outcomes of infertility treatments and pregnancy overall. Objective. To compare stress and negative afect (depression, irritability, and anxiety) in families with induced pregnancies (in-vitro fertilization, IFV) vs. natural pregnancies. Te relationship between negative afect and stress in pregnant women was explored in both groups. Finally, the study investigated links between negative afect andтpartner relationships. Design. Te sample included 308 women and 278 men from couples with naturalт conception, and 131 women and 102 men from couples with an IVF pregnancy. Results. Relatively low levels of negative afective states and stress were found in families with both natural and induced pregnancies. Moderate correlations were found between women’s negative afect and their stress level in both groups. Signifcant correlations were found in both groups between negative psychological states of the spouses, as well as between negative psychological states and warmth/hostility in marital relations. Conclusion. Te results suggest that psychological states, stress levels, and links between psychological states and quality of family relations are similar in families with IVF and those with natural pregnancies. Further longitudinal research is needed to explore the direction of causal links between the psychological states of the spouses, and between their psychological states and the quality of family relations.

Keywords

• pregnancy
• IVF
• infertility
• family relationships
• stress
• psychological states