The role of episodic future thinking in perinatal mental health
Tools
Tools
Mortimer, Linda. 2024. The role of episodic future thinking in perinatal mental health. Doctoral thesis, Goldsmiths, University of London [Thesis]
|
Text (The role of episodic future thinking in perinatal mental health)
PSY_thesis_MortimerL_2024.pdf - Accepted Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution Non-commercial No Derivatives. Download (2MB) | Preview |
Abstract or Description
Pregnancy is, for many women, a time of happiness and joy, as they look forward to the birth of their baby. However, for some, it signals a time of adjustment to new demands, that can result in increased levels of worry and stress. There is a growing body of evidence that shows there is an association between high maternal stress during pregnancy and premature birth, lower birth weight, smaller infant head circumference, and subsequent impaired cognitive development (Huizink et al., 2004a). Pregnant women are more future-focused, thinking about childbirth and their new lives as mothers, engaging in episodic future thinking. Episodic future thinking is our ability to mentally travel into the future and includes our ability to simulate, make predictions, set goals and plan for possible future events (Gilbert & Wilson, 2007; Szpunar et al., 2014). The current thesis sets out to clarify the factors associated with episodic future thinking that contribute to and maintain pregnancy-related anxiety, which can be utilised in a much-needed intervention that could enhance the well-being of mother and child.
In Study 1: Phase 1, eighty soon-to-be first-time mothers imagined their impending labour and the birth of their baby and early parenthood in as much detail as possible, out loud, during a semi-structured interview. They rated their anxiety for these events both pre- and post-simulation, along with their experience of a range of phenomenological qualities of their future thinking. The simulations were recorded and transcribed which allowed the researcher to identify additional qualities that related to post simulation anxiety. Post-simulation anxiety was rated lower after imagining the events, an effect that was strongest for childbirth. Additionally, the participant rated qualities of anticipated emotional valence and the researcher rated number of specific steps in the simulations were found to relate to post-simulation anxiety. This suggests that being able to create simulations of the future that focus on higher positive and lower negative anticipated emotions along with populating the simulations with a high number of specific steps to get from the beginning to the end of the event could lower post-simulation anxiety further.
Study 1: Phase 2 followed up on the women from Phase 1 and explored the importance of simulation accuracy in postpartum mental health. Imagining the future may have longer-term positive benefits, if expectation matches the reality of the event that is experienced. The women from Phase 1 were contacted around 8 weeks postpartum and asked to rate the extent to which the experience of giving birth and life with a newborn matched their expectations as set out in their simulations. The women gave childbirth the lowest level of simulation accuracy (whether the event matched their expectation as set out in their simulations in Phase 1) and valence accuracy (whether the experience was better or worse than imagined). However only valence accuracy was related to postpartum anxiety as measured by the GAD-7, suggesting that the women had an expectation that their childbirth experience would be different to what they expected and were anxious if it was worse. The first day at home with baby simulation accuracy on the other hand was related to postpartum anxiety, with the women rating their experience of that day as different to what they expected, and this was associated with their level of anxiety postpartum. Study 1: Phase 2 suggests that simulation and valence accuracy are important when imagining these events and have longer-term implications for mental health.
Study 2 tested the efficacy of a brief intervention for perinatal anxiety, focusing on increasing specificity in future thinking. Those in the intervention condition, who had received a series of prompts intended to increase the specificity of their simulations of childbirth and the first day at home with their baby, had significantly lower post-simulation anxiety ratings compared to their pre simulation anxiety, and when compared to the control group. This suggests that increasing the specificity in simulations of the future is an effective way to reduce anxiety in soon-to-be first-time mothers. Suggestions are made as to the methodological issues raised in this thesis, along with a discussion of the implications of the findings in relation to the application of episodic future thinking in the management of anxiety and possible future research.
|
Item Type: |
Thesis (Doctoral) |
| Identification Number (DOI): |
|
| Keywords: |
Episodic Future Thinking, Prospection, Anxiety, Pregnancy Related Anxiety, Perinatal Mental Health |
| Departments, Centres and Research Units: |
|
| Date: |
30 September 2024 |
| Item ID: |
37746 |
| Date Deposited: |
18 Oct 2024 11:14 |
| Last Modified: |
18 Oct 2024 11:17 |
|
URI: |
View statistics for this item...
 |
Edit Record (login required) |