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Title: Factor Structure for Chronic Stress Before and During Pregnancy by Racial/Ethnic Group.

Authors: Kim, Sangmi; Im, Eun-Ok; Liu, Jianghong; Ulrich, Connie

Published In West J Nurs Res, (2019 05)

Abstract: This study aimed to explore race/ethnicity-specific dimensionalities of chronic stress before and during pregnancy for non-Hispanic (N-H) White, N-H Black, Hispanic, and Asian women in the United States. This study analyzed the data among 6,850 women from the New York City and Washington State Pregnancy Risk Assessment Monitoring System (2004-2007) linked with birth certificates. Separate exploratory factor analysis was conducted by race/ethnicity using a maximum-likelihood extraction method with 26 chronic stress items before and during pregnancy. Correlations and internal consistency reliabilities among items and latent factors determined race/ethnicity-specific factor structures of chronic stress. Chronic stress was race/ethnicity-distinctive and multidimensional with low correlations among the factors ( r = .07-.28, p < .05). Despite financial hardship, perceived isolation, and physical violence underlying chronic stress among the racial/ethnic groups, intergroup variations existed under each group's cultural or sociopolitical contexts. This study could help develop targeted strategies to intervene with women's chronic stressors before childbirth.

PubMed ID: 30019628 Exiting the NIEHS site

MeSH Terms: Adult; African Continental Ancestry Group/psychology; African Continental Ancestry Group/statistics & numerical data; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/psychology; Asian Continental Ancestry Group/statistics & numerical data; Educational Status; Ethnic Groups/psychology*; Ethnic Groups/statistics & numerical data; European Continental Ancestry Group/psychology; European Continental Ancestry Group/statistics & numerical data; Female; Hispanic Americans/psychology; Hispanic Americans/statistics & numerical data; Humans; Income/statistics & numerical data; New York City; Pregnancy; Risk Assessment/methods; Risk Assessment/statistics & numerical data; Stress, Psychological/etiology; Stress, Psychological/psychology*; Washington

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