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Published on: January 12, 2018
Understanding pregnant women's decision making concerning prenatal screening
Matthijs van den Berg1, Danielle R M Timmermans, Dirk L Knol
1EMGO Institute, Department of Public and Occupational Health, VU University Medical Center, The Netherlands. M.vandenberg@vumc.nl
Summary
Understanding prenatal screening decisions is key. A woman's attitude toward termination and screening, along with social norms, influences her choice for Down's syndrome testing.
Area of Science:
- Health Psychology
- Medical Decision Making
- Genetics
Background:
- Prenatal screening for Down's syndrome involves complex decision-making for expectant mothers.
- Understanding the psychological and social factors influencing these decisions is crucial for effective counseling.
Purpose of the Study:
- To test a decision model for prenatal screening based on decision and health behavior theories.
- To identify key determinants of pregnant women's intention to undergo prenatal screening for Down's syndrome.
Main Methods:
- Questionnaires were administered to 1,666 pregnant women offered Down's syndrome screening.
- Path analysis (LISREL) was employed to evaluate a hypothesized decision model, with split-sample cross-validation.
Main Results:
- Attitude toward termination, perceived test efficacy, and subjective norms significantly shaped attitudes toward prenatal screening.
- While anxiety was influenced by perceived risk and severity, it weakly predicted intention to test.
- Positive attitudes and perceived social norms favoring screening strongly predicted the intention to undergo the procedure.
Conclusions:
- Counseling for prenatal screening should more deeply consider individual values and the social context of pregnant women.
- Interventions aimed at enhancing informed decision-making should address attitudes, perceived efficacy, and social influences.
