The impact of obstetric violence on postpartum quality of life through psychological pathways

Pregnancy and childbirth as important events in women's lives should be guided based on quality and humanized principles. This study aimed to test a conceptual model considering the interrelated role of obstetric violence, mental health, self-esteem, and PTSD on the postpartum quality of life (PQOL) using path analysis. This cross-sectional study was conducted on 385 parturient women who have given birth from January to May 2022 using the convenience sampling method. Data were collected using a socio-demographic checklist, EPREVO, DASS-21, PCL-5, Rosenberg Self-Esteem Scale, and PQOL scales. Path analysis was applied to generate specified patterns of causal relationships between variables and to determine the type of relationships between predictor and response variables using LISREL software ver.8.8. We found that obstetric violence (β = - 0.659), self-esteem (β = 0.223), mental health (β = - 0.396), and PTSD (β = 0.345) are the main predictors of postpartum QoL. In addition to its direct effect, obstetric violence can impress the PQOL through the effect on mental health (β = 0.533), self-esteem (β = 0.222), and PTSD (β = 0.229), indirectly. Our finding highlighted the negative effect of obstetric violence on mental health, self-esteem, PTSD, and PQOL. Therefore, it is recommended that policymakers and managers adopt programs to promote respectful maternal care and prevent obstetric violence to prevent the occurrence of adverse effects in parturient women.