Determination of the correlation of gender of fetus with prenatal attachment and perceived social support level

Determination of the Correlation of Gender of Fetus with Prenatal Attachment and Perceived Social Support Level Objective: This cross-sectional study was conducted to determine the correlation of gender of fetus with prenatal attachment and perceived social support level. Material and Method: The study was conducted in Family Health Centers 'Sıtmapınarı, Fırat, Özalper, Mücelli, Çarmuzu, Adafı I, Vahit-Nezahat Bozatlı and Karakavak' affiliated with Community Health Center of Malatya between August 2015 and June 2016. The population of the study consisted of 847 pregnant women who were in the 3rd trimester of pregnancy and registered in above-mentioned FHCs. When power analysis was carried out, sample size was calculated as 265 at confidence interval of 95% and significance level of 0.05. The pregnant women who applied to FHC and met inclusion criteria of the study were selected by using improbable sampling method. The data were obtained through face-to-face interview method by using 'Pregnant Introduction Form', 'Prenatal Attachment Inventory' and 'Multidimensional Scale of Perceived Social Support'. The data were analyzed by using descriptive statistics, Mann Whitney U tests, independent samples t test, and Cronbach alpha reliability analysis test. Results: In the study, it was determined that prenatal attachment levels of primigravida women who were pregnant to female fetus were higher than primigravida women who were pregnant to male fetus (p<0.05). Prenatal attachment and perceived social support levels of multigravida women who were pregnant to male fetus/ had only male children were higher than multigravida women who were pregnant to female fetus/ had only female children (p<0.05). Conclusion: While female gender of fetus in primigravida women affected prenatal attachment positively, male gender of fetus/male children in multigravida women increased both prenatal attachment and perceived social support level. Key words: Fetal gender, prenatal attachment, social support