Psychometric aspects of the Tilburg Pregnancy Distress Scale: data from the HAPPY study

Myrthe G B M Boekhorst; Annemerle Beerthuizen; Maarten Van Son; Veerle Bergink; Victor J M Pop

doi:10.1007/s00737-019-00974-4

Psychometric aspects of the Tilburg Pregnancy Distress Scale: data from the HAPPY study

Arch Womens Ment Health. 2020 Apr;23(2):215-219. doi: 10.1007/s00737-019-00974-4. Epub 2019 May 2.

Authors

Myrthe G B M Boekhorst^{1

2

3}, Annemerle Beerthuizen⁴, Maarten Van Son⁵, Veerle Bergink^{4

6}, Victor J M Pop⁷

Affiliations

¹ Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Tilburg University, Warandelaan 2, PO Box 90153, 5000, 5037 AB, LE Tilburg, The Netherlands. m.g.b.m.boekhorst@uvt.nl.
² Department of Psychiatry, Erasmus MC, University Medical Centre Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands. m.g.b.m.boekhorst@uvt.nl.
³ Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Máxima Medical Centre, Veldhoven, The Netherlands. m.g.b.m.boekhorst@uvt.nl.
⁴ Department of Psychiatry, Erasmus MC, University Medical Centre Rotterdam, Rotterdam, The Netherlands.
⁵ Department of Clinical and Health Psychology, Utrecht University, Utrecht, The Netherlands.
⁶ Departments of Psychiatry and Obstetrics, Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, New York, USA.
⁷ Department of Medical and Clinical Psychology, Tilburg University, Warandelaan 2, PO Box 90153, 5000, 5037 AB, LE Tilburg, The Netherlands.

Abstract

We previously developed the Tilburg Pregnancy Distress Scale (TPDS). The aim of the current study was to further assess its test-retest reliability, internal consistency, and construct and concurrent validity in 1739 pregnant women. TPDS scores during pregnancy were highly inter-correlated (r ≥ .70), with similar findings for its Negative Affect and Partner Involvement subscales. Pregnancy and delivery worries varied in different subgroups of women regarding their obstetric history. Nullipara reported more pregnancy- and delivery-related worries at all trimesters of pregnancy. Women with previous pregnancy-related complications reported more pregnancy-related worries, and those with previous delivery-related problems reported more delivery-related worries than women without these problems in the past. The TPDS seems to be a valid and reliable instrument to assess pregnancy-specific distress.

Keywords: Delivery; Maternal distress; Negative affect; Pregnant women; Test-retest reliability; Validity.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Anxiety / diagnosis*
Cohort Studies
Female
Humans
Perinatal Care / standards
Pregnancy / psychology*
Psychological Distress*
Psychometrics / standards*
Reproducibility of Results
Surveys and Questionnaires / standards*