Psychological reflections of guilt among mothers of infants hospitalized in the neonatal intensive care unit: a multiple moderator effect analysis.

OBJECTIVES

To investigate the effects of maternal guilt on depression, anxiety, and stress among mothers of infants in neonatal intensive care units, and to explore the moderating roles of parity, type of delivery, and sex of the baby.

METHOD: The study was conducted with 332 mothers in a training and research hospital in Türkiye. Direct and moderating effects among variables were tested using Model 1 of the PROCESS macro v4.

RESULTS

The analysis revealed that maternal guilt had a significant positive direct effect on levels of depression, anxiety, and stress. The parity, type of delivery, and sex of the baby were found to moderate the impact of guilt on stress. In contrast, only the type of delivery moderated the effect of guilt on anxiety.

CONCLUSION

The results may contribute to the development of targeted interventions aimed at improving the mental health of mothers with babies in neonatal intensive care units.