Abstract:

Objective: The aim of the study is to determine the relationship between mother-infant attachment and mother-infant contact barriers and stress levels of mothers whose infants are hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit. Methods: The study was conducted in a descriptive and correlational study type. In the study, 111 mothers whose babies were hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit between the October 2022- January 2023 and who met the criteria for inclusion in the study were reached, without choosing a sample. In order to collect the data, Information Form to Introduce Mother and Baby, Mother-Father Stress Scale, Mother-Infant Contact Barriers Scale and Mother-Infant Attachment Scale were used. Results: The mean age of the mothers participating in the study was 29.48±5.019 years. In the study, it was determined that mothers mostly experienced stress due to the appearance and behavior of their babies, mothers got high points from the mother-infant contact barriers scale (50.84±11.872) and got a low score (1.36±2.536) from the mother-infant attachment scale. In the study, no statistically significant relationship was found between mothers’ perceived stress and their attachment levels (p>.05). In the study, a moderate positive correlation was found between mothers' perceived contact barriers and their attachment levels (p<.01). Conclusion: In the study, it was determined that mothers mostly experienced stress due to the appearance and behavior of their babies. It has also been determined that as the contact barriers perceived by mothers increase, their stress level also increases and mother-baby bonding may be delayed.

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