Ethics code: IR.KUMS.REC.1401.447
Ehteram Ebrahimi1 
, Mehdi Khezeli *1 , Marjan Mardani-Hamooleh2 , Nasrin Mansouri3 , Ali Almasi1 , Badriyeh Karami4
, Mehdi Khezeli *1 , Marjan Mardani-Hamooleh2 , Nasrin Mansouri3 , Ali Almasi1 , Badriyeh Karami4
1- Social Development and Health Promotion Research Center, Health Policy and Promotion Institute, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran
2- Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
3- Clinical Research Development Center, Motazedi Hospital, Kermanshah University of Medical sciences, kermanshah, Iran
4- Students Research Committee, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran
2- Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Iran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
3- Clinical Research Development Center, Motazedi Hospital, Kermanshah University of Medical sciences, kermanshah, Iran
4- Students Research Committee, Kermanshah University of Medical Sciences, Kermanshah, Iran
Abstract: (35 Views)
Objective(s): The suffering that mothers endure due to giving birth to a premature infant is excruciating. In this study, the lived experiences of mothers regarding the factors that helped them adapt to the difficulties of preterm birth and caring for a premature infant were examined in the socio-cultural context of Iran.
Methods: This qualitative research was conducted with a phenomenological approach and involved 16 mothers whose premature infants were hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit at Imam Reza Hospital in Kermanshah. The sampling was purposive. Individual and face-to-face interviews were used to collect data. Dickelman’s seven-step method was used to analyze the data.
Results: The analysis of the interviews yielded to three themes including "cognitive empowerment", "cultivating hope" and "benefiting from social support". The theme of "cognitive empowerment" means strengthening and developing individuals' mental abilities and cognitive skills to deal with challenges. This theme was formed from a combination of four subthemes including "inducing self-efficacy", "perceiving threat as an opportunity", "normalization" and “justification”. The second theme was formed from a combination of two subthemes including; "cultivating hope through prayer and gratitude" and "cultivating hope through fostering optimism". The third theme was emerged from a combination of two subthemes including; "benefiting from support and sympathy of relatives" and "benefiting from support and sympathy of healthcare staff".
Conclusion: Many mothers participating in this study were able to achieve a relatively suitable adaptation to the birth of their premature infants and the problems of caring for them by using their psychological strengths and resources, as well as by benefiting from the existing social support. The experiences expressed by these mothers can be helpful in developing psychosocial interventions to improve the adaptation of mothers with premature infant.
Methods: This qualitative research was conducted with a phenomenological approach and involved 16 mothers whose premature infants were hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit at Imam Reza Hospital in Kermanshah. The sampling was purposive. Individual and face-to-face interviews were used to collect data. Dickelman’s seven-step method was used to analyze the data.
Results: The analysis of the interviews yielded to three themes including "cognitive empowerment", "cultivating hope" and "benefiting from social support". The theme of "cognitive empowerment" means strengthening and developing individuals' mental abilities and cognitive skills to deal with challenges. This theme was formed from a combination of four subthemes including "inducing self-efficacy", "perceiving threat as an opportunity", "normalization" and “justification”. The second theme was formed from a combination of two subthemes including; "cultivating hope through prayer and gratitude" and "cultivating hope through fostering optimism". The third theme was emerged from a combination of two subthemes including; "benefiting from support and sympathy of relatives" and "benefiting from support and sympathy of healthcare staff".
Conclusion: Many mothers participating in this study were able to achieve a relatively suitable adaptation to the birth of their premature infants and the problems of caring for them by using their psychological strengths and resources, as well as by benefiting from the existing social support. The experiences expressed by these mothers can be helpful in developing psychosocial interventions to improve the adaptation of mothers with premature infant.
type of study: Qualitative Study |
Subject:
Health Psychologhy
Received: 2025/02/28 | Accepted: 2025/11/12 | ePublished ahead of print: 2026/07/20
Received: 2025/02/28 | Accepted: 2025/11/12 | ePublished ahead of print: 2026/07/20
References
1. Bradley E, Blencowe H, Moller AB, Okwaraji YB, Sadler F, Gruending A, et al. Born too soon: global epidemiology of preterm birth and drivers for change. Reproductive Health 2025;22:105 [DOI:10.1186/s12978-025-02033-x]
2. Vakilian K, Ranjbaran M, Khorsandi M, Sharafkhani N, Khodadost M. Prevalence of preterm labor in Iran: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
3. International Journal of Reproductive BioMedicine 2015;13:743-748
4. Sharifi N, Khazaeian S, Pakzad R, Fathnezhad Kazemi A, Chehreh H. Investigating the prevalence of preterm birth in Iranian population: a systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Caring Science 2017;6:371-380 [DOI:10.15171/jcs.2017.035]
5. Walani SR. Global burden of preterm birth. International Journal of Gynecology & Obstetrics 2020; 150:31-3 [DOI:10.1002/ijgo.13195]
6. Gulshan S, Abdullahi KO, Yaqoob A, Ali A, Gull S. Exploring the experience of mothers of premature babies: a phenomenological study. Gomal Journal of Medical Sciences 2023;21:218-222 [DOI:10.54393/pjhs.v4i02.518]
7. Minuta WM, Lera T, Haile D, Badacho AS, Bekele B, Ganta AG, et al. Lived Experience of Mothers Having Preterm Newborns in a Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Wolaita Sodo University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital Southern Ethiopia: A Phenomenological Study. Research and Reports in Neonatology 2023;13:1-14 [DOI:10.2147/RRN.S417173]
8. Wang LL, Ma JJ, Meng HH, Zhou J. Mothers' experiences of neonatal intensive care: A systematic reviewand implications for clinical practice. World Journal Clinical Cases 2021;9:7062-7072 [DOI:10.12998/wjcc.v9.i24.7062]
9. Pinar G, Erbaba H. Experiences of New Mothers with Premature Babies in Neonatal Care Units: A Qualitative Study. Jornal of Nursing and Practice 2020;3:179-185 [DOI:10.36959/545/381]
10. Namusoke F, Sekikubo M, Namiiro F, Nakigudde J. "What are you carrying?" Experiences of mothers with preterm babies in lowresource setting neonatal intensive care unit: a qualitative study. British Medical Journals Open 2021;11:e043989 [DOI:10.1136/bmjopen-2020-043989]
11. Garti I, Donkor E, Musah N, Osei Appiah E, Gyekye S, Awube Menlahand A, et al. Mothers' experiences of caring for preterm babies at home: qualitative insights from an urban setting in a middle-income country. BMC Pregnancy and Childbirth 2021;21:395 [DOI:10.1186/s12884-021-03872-9]
12. Van Schalkwyk EA, Gerber B. Vulnerable mothers' experience of feeding their preterm infant in neonatal care. South African Journal of Communication Disorders 2021;68:a842 [DOI:10.4102/sajcd.v68i1.842]
13. Phillips-Pula L, Pickler R, McGrath JM, Brown LF, Dusing SC. Caring for a Preterm Infant at Home A Mother's Perspective. The Journal of Perinatal & Neonatal Nursing 2013;27:335-344 [DOI:10.1097/JPN.0b013e3182a983be]
14. Acharya S, Bhandari S, Bhattarai S, Gaire H. Experiences of mothers having preterm infants admitted in neonatal intensive care unit: a qualitative study. Journal of Chitwan Medical College 2021;11:4-8 [DOI:10.54530/jcmc.454]
15. Sih DA, Bimerew M, Modeste RRM. Coping strategies of mothers with preterm babies admitted in a public hospital in Cape Town. Curationis 2019;42:a1872 [DOI:10.4102/curationis.v42i1.1872]
16. Polit DF, Beck CT. Nursing research: principles and methods. 9 st Edition, Lippincott Williams & Wilkins: Philadelphia, 2012
17. Holahan CJ, Ragan JD, Moos RH. Stress. In: Stein J, eds. Reference Module in Neuroscience and Biobehavioral Psychology (online reference database). 1 st Edition, Elsevier: Oxford, 2017:485-493 [DOI:10.1016/B978-0-12-809324-5.05724-2]
18. Audulv A, Packer T, Hutchinson S, Roger KS, Kephart G. Coping, adapting or self-managing - what is the difference? A concept review based on the neurological literature. Journal of Advanced Nursing 2016;72:2629-2643 [DOI:10.1111/jan.13037]
19. Vance AJ, Pan W, Malcolm WH, Brandon DH. Development of parenting self-efficacy in mothers of high-risk infants. Early Human Development 2020;141:78-86 [DOI:10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2019.104946]
20. Yavari Moghaddam F, Hosseinian S, Emami F, Azad N. The Moderating Role of Cognitive Flexibility in the Relationship between Parental Stress and Perceived Maternal Parenting Self-Efficacy. Clinical Psychology 2023;15:29-38 [Persian]
21. Söğüt M, Köse A. The Exploration of Maternal Self-Efficacy: The Role of Childhood Traumas, Adult Attachment and Cognitive Flexibility. Ahmet Keleşoğlu Eğitim Fakültesi Dergisi (AKEF) Dergisi 2023;5:1438-1450 [DOI:10.38151/akef.2023.119]
22. Aslan Ş Türk F. Comparison of concepts of cognitive flexibility and psychological flexibility. Psikiyatride Guncel Yaklasimlar 2022;14:119- 30 [DOI:10.18863/pgy.917360]
23. Han HD, Park HW, Kee BS, Na C, Na DE, Zaichkowsky L. Performance enhancement with low stress and anxiety modulated by cognitive flexibility. Psychiatry Investigation 2011;8:221-226 [DOI:10.4306/pi.2011.8.3.221]
24. Veronez M, Borghesan NAB, Corrêa DAM, Higarashi IH. Experience of mothers of premature babies from birth to discharge: notes of field journals. Revista Gaúcha de Enfermagem 2017;38: e60911 [DOI:10.1590/1983-1447.2017.02.60911]
25. Nolen-Hoeksema S, Fredrickson BL, Loftus GR, Wagenaa WA. Atkinson & Hilgard's introduction to psychology. 15 st Edition, Wadsworth Pub Co: Belmont, 2009
Send email to the article author
| Rights and Permissions | |
 |
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International License. |