Acceptance of Pregnancy-Induced Disease and Intrapersonal Resistance Resources of Pregnant Women—Preliminary Report

Abstract

The health problems complicating pregnancy are a source of anxiety and concern about the developing fetus’ health and life. The aim of the study was to assess the acceptance of illness and selected intrapersonal resistance resources for women whose pregnancies are complicated by gestational diabetes or pregnancy-induced hypertension and their determinants. The study was conducted from April 2019 to January 2021 in 688 pregnant women who were patients of the pregnancy pathology department and gynecology-obstetrics outpatient clinics in Lublin (Poland), using a diagnostic survey method with the use of the following research tools: Acceptance Illness Scale, Generalized Self-Efficacy Scale, Multidimensional Health Locus of Control Scale, and the standardized interview questionnaire. The study group included 337 women with gestational diabetes and pregnancy-induced hypertension. The control group included 351 women with an uncomplicated course of pregnancy. The level of acceptance of illness in pregnant women with pregnancy-induced diseases is on the border between medium and high acceptance (29.36 ± 7.82). The respondents in the control group had lower levels of self-efficacy (28.47 vs. 29.62) and health locus of control in the internal dimension (24.61 vs. 26.25) (p < 0.05). Respondents with pregnancy-induced diseases are characterized by the internal dimension of locus of health control.