The Concept of Social Support from the Perspective of Pregnant Mothers: A Phenomenological Study

Introduction: Social support by family and community reduces maternal stress during pregnancy and enhances the process of delivery and thus improves maternal health. This study aimed to analyze the concept of social support for pregnant mothers.Methods: This study was a qualitative phenomenological one. The data were collected through in-depth semi-structured in-person interviews with ۴۰ pregnant mothers and health care providers. A total of ۴۰ individual interviews were conducted. The participants were selected using purposive sampling, and the interviews continued until new and rich concepts did not emerge. Conceptual analysis in this study was performed using the Dikelman method.Results: In the initial data analysis, ۱۰۱۷ codes were first extracted. After comparing the data, the number of codes was reduced to ۱۰۵, and finally, three categories were extracted. The concept of social support for pregnant mothers from the participants’ perspective was classified into three categories of “information support”, “need satisfaction”, and “spiritual support”.Conclusion: Policymaking and service delivery for pregnant women considering the dimensions of social support through increasing information, meeting needs, and providing spiritual support for mothers can be an effective step in improving the health of pregnant mothers.

Keywords:

Social support , Pregnant Mothers , qualitative research , Phenomenology