Maternal history of childhood maltreatment and perceived parental self-efficacy among expecting mothers

Childhood is a critical period when children develop cognitively, socially, emotionally, and behaviorally. Previous research has shown that childhood maltreatment has consequential lifetime repercussions. A history of childhood maltreatment has been shown to impact parental self-efficacy, but there has been limited research on perceived parental self-efficacy among expecting mothers with a history of childhood maltreatment. This study investigated the relationship between maternal history of childhood maltreatment (i.e., emotional neglect, physical neglect, emotional abuse, physical abuse, and sexual abuse) and perceived parental self-efficacy among 130 expecting mothers. They were asked to fill out questions regarding their history of childhood maltreatment and their perceived parental self-efficacy. Inconsistent with previous literature, maternal history of childhood maltreatment was not significantly correlated to an expecting mother’s perceived parental self-efficacy. Multiple linear regression analysis demonstrated that emotional neglect and physical abuse may be significant predictors of perceived parental self-efficacy, however, these results should be interpreted in regards to several limitations. Exploratory analyses were also conducted to examine the association of socioeconomic status, education level, and the current number of children with perceived parental self-efficacy. The present study discusses future implications in parental interventions to improve perceived parental self-efficacy.