Prediction of pregnancy distress based on emotional self-disclosure and self-regulation

Pregnancy distress is a particular type of stress which refers to maternal fears and distress about pregnancy including distress about fetus health, physical symptoms, parenting, relationships with others and childbirth. The present study aimed to predict pregnancy distress based on the emotional self-disclosure and self-regulation.
The statistical population of this descriptive study included all pregnant women referred to a pregnancy care centers in June 2016, among whom 240 were selected based on convenient sampling. The questionnaires of pregnancy distress, emotional self-disclosure, and self-regulation were used for collecting data. The collected data were analyzed by using Pearson correlation coefficient and multiple regression analysis.
The results indicated a significant relationship between pregnancy distress and emotional self-disclosure subscales such as depression (r= -0.793), happiness (r= -0.121), jealousy (r= -0.13), anxiety (r= 0.317), relaxation (r= -0.224), fear (r= -0.518), and emotional self-regulation sub-scales such as prior-focused regulation strategies (r= -0.214) and response-focused regulation strategies (r= -0.317). Based on the results of multiple regression among emotional self-disclosure dimensions of depression, fear at the negative level of 0.01 and jealousy at the positive level of 0.05 could predict pregnancy distress. Further, prior-focused self-regulation strategies played a significant role in predicting pregnancy distress at the level of 0.05.
According to the results, emotional self-discourse and self-regulation can predict pregnancy distress. The results can have a considerable effect to inform pregnant women about the effects of emotional self-disclosure and self-regulation skills on the pregnancy distress.