Examing the relationship between excessive social media use during pregnancy and body image, distress levels and fear of childbirth

This study examined the relationship between excessive social media use during pregnancy and body image, distress level and fear of the childbirth. The main purpose of the study is to examine the relationship between excessive social media use during pregnancy and body image, distress level and fear of childbirth, while at the same time observing the predictive effects of variables on fear of childbirth. The study was conducted with a quantitative resarch design using the relational survey model. Participants consisted of 251 pregnant women living in Turkey who voluntarily participated in the study, Social Media Usage Scale, Body Appreciation Scale-2 (BAS-2), Tilburg Pregnancy Distress Scale (TGDS) and Wijma Delivery Expectancy/Expectation Questionnaire (W-DEQ A) were used as data collection tools. parametric statistical methods (Pearson correlation, One-Way Analysis of Variance (ANOVA), Independent Samples t-test) and multiple regression analysis were used to analyze the data. As a result of the study, it was observed that excessive social media use was negatively correlated with body image and positively correlated with distress level and fear of childbirth. In addition, it was observed that as body image negative, distress level and fear of childbirth increased. According to the multiple regression analysis, when social media use, body image and distress level were taken together, it was observed that they were significant predictors of fear of childbirth. The findings obtained as a result of the study show that the content exposed on social media may have an impact on women's psychological well-being during pregnancy.