Marital satisfaction is a vital indicator of individuals’ happiness with their marital life and is one of the most important factors affecting the survival and growth of a family (1, 2). Marital satisfaction refers to objective emotions about the woman or man’s satisfaction regarding all aspects of their marriage. This mental state encompasses various dimensions, including sexual relationships, personality traits, relations with others, participation in decision-making, relations with the spousal family, the way of spending leisure time, and religious commonality.
Olson believes that the extent of marital satisfaction in each of the lifecycle stages is different. Schlesinger presents three curves for this concept, including a linear decline after the honeymoon period, a curved trend during which the family is devoid of children with increased independence as the most important event, and finally a U-shaped curve associated with a peak in the early years, a decline during the birth of children, and eventually a rise as the children leave the family (3-5).
In a study performed by Shakerian in Iran, 63.2% of the healthy women had problems in their marital relationships (6). In another study carried out by Attari, 49.9% of the participants reported to have a moderate level of satisfaction with their marital relationships (7). In a study conducted in Tehran, Saadat Mousavi found that one fourth of women with higher education level and one third of women with diploma had unpleasant and very unpleasant marital status and needed a serious couple therapy (8).
One of the most important stages of lifecycle that is relatively difficult and complex is transition from marriage to parenthood. The adaptation to the new member of the family is accompanied by the incidence of a number
of changes across all aspects of marital relationship (9-11). The process of “transition to parenthood” initiates from the period before pregnancy. In other words, it begins from the days when the couple predict parenthood and imagine themselves in this role. This period is considered to usually consist of nine phases, including: 1) decision to become pregnant, 2) physical measures for pregnancy (non-use of contraceptives), 3) pregnancy, 4) birth, 5) the first 6 weeks post-delivery, 6) 6 weeks to 6 months post-delivery, 7) 6-12 months post-delivery, 8) 12-18 months of child’s age, and 9) 18-24 months of child’s age (12).
The birth of the first child is usually predicted as a time for happiness and excitement. However, the very issue of “transition to parenthood” can be associated with fatigue and confusion about the changes in roles and relations (13-6). When transitioning to the parental stage, changes in sexual relationships cause altered emotional intimacy, which is absolutely important (17). Factors, such as reduced sleep, neonate’s dire need to the parents, and increased maternal involvement with the newborn, cause further problems in this regard (18-20).
Both mother and father should specify their responsibilities and initiate the process of establishing a relationship with the newborn (13, 21). In a couple of studies performed by Doss B. et al. (2009) and Lawrence et al. (2008), the couples with children reported a lower level of sexual satisfaction and less time for common activities, compared to those without children (22, 23).
Various factors, including income status, children’ health, sexual satisfaction, childbirth, and employment status, affect the couple’s relationship in marital life (24, 25). It sounds that with the entrance of women to high-income jobs, the division of housekeeping duties and balance in couple contribution have been converted to important subjects for the perception of justice (26-28). Employed mothers should match their occupational responsibilities with the familial ones. However, this may result in conflicts, diminished occupational satisfaction, and poor performance in serving the maternal and spousal roles.
Multiple studies have investigated the relationship between marital satisfaction and division of housekeeping or parenthood duties among employed women and housewives. However, to the best of our knowledge, there is no study examining this relationship during the transition to parenthood period, which is a turning point in couple’s relationship. Transition to parenthood period and marital satisfaction are issues of fundamental importance among employed women and housewives, which eventually contribute to strengthening the family system. With this background in mind, the current study was conducted with the aim of determining the relationship between the transition difficulty to parenthood and marital satisfaction among employed women and housewives.
Materials and Methods
This correlational study was conducted on 120 housewives and employed mothers referring to the healthcare centers of Mashhad, Iran, in 2014 for neonatal health monitoring. The study population was selected using a three-stage clustering technique. In this regard, in the first stage, the five healthcare centers in Mashhad were considered as classes. In the second stage, the healthcare centers and bases covered by each of the five centers were chosen through the table of random numbers.
Finally, in the third stage, the research unit
was selected through convenience sampling technique.
To this end, first, the healthcare centers and bases covered by each of the healthcare centers 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and Samen were listed. Then, the population covered by each of the healthcare classes was determined, and its percentage to the total population covered by the healthcare centers was calculated. Thereafter, the share of each class in the entire sample size was calculated. Subsequently, the number of the required healthcare centers as cluster was calculated using the table of random numbers. Finally, the number of the required couples from each of the healthcare centers was determined, whereby 14 healthcare centers were specified. The sample size was determined by performing a preliminary study based on which the final sample size was estimated using a correlation formula. The participants were divided into two groups of housewife and employed based on their occupational status.
The inclusion criteria were: 1) literacy, 2) no history of any psychological diseases (i.e., nervous system diseases, psychiatric medication consumption, history of hospitalization in a psychiatric hospital, and being under the supervision of a psychiatrist or a psychologist consultant), 3) no history of any incurable physical diseases (e.g., cancer, AIDS, chemotherapy, amputation, spinal cord injury, paralysis, blindness, hearing loss, and speech impairment), 4) drug abuse, 5) use of psychotropic drugs or alcohol, and 6) being in the first marriage.
On the other hand, the participants who did not live with their parents or spouse were excluded from the study. In addition, the incidence of a traumatic event in the past three months and incomplete questionnaires by at most 5% were among other exclusion criteria. Furthermore, the inclusion criteria for the children were: 1) child’s age range of 6 weeks to 6 months in couples with one child and regarding the couples with two children, the first child’s age of < 8 years and the second child’s age range of 6 weeks to 6 months, 2) healthy status (i.e., lack of cardiovascular, pulmonary, and renal diseases, hypertension, diabetes, seizure, mental or physical retardation, and genetic diseases), 3) singleton birth, and 4) biological child.
The research instruments included Transition (to Parenthood) Difficulty Scale (TDS; Steffensmeier, 1982; Twiss, 1989), ENRICH Marital Inventory (29), and demographic form. The modified TDS measures the degree of “difficulty of transitioning” experienced by new parents. This instrument contains 38 items with four dimensions, namely parental responsibilities and limitations, parental satisfaction and gratification, marital intimacy and stability, and personal commitment (30). The TDS is rated on a 5-point Likert scale with the score ranges of 50-109, 110-179, and 180-250 suggesting low, moderate, and high levels of difficulty in transitioning to parenthood, respectively (10).
This scale is a standard and valid instrument, which has been used abroad in different studies (30-32). Since this instrument had not been used in Iran before, its reliability and validity were estimated in the present study. To this end, the translated version of the scale was distributed among the faculty members of nursing and midwifery, as well as the professors of English department to determine its content validity. In the next stage, the corrective comments were applied in the instrument.
The TDS has been used in a study performed by Zelkowitz and Milet (1997) reporting a reliability range of 0.75-82 for its four subscales (30). In addition, Muller et al. reported the Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.81 and 0.65-0.82 for the entire instrument and its subscales, respectively (31). In the current study, the reliability of this scale was confirmed by obtaining a Cronbach’s alpha coefficient of 0.79. Furthermore, this value was estimated as 0.78, 0.74, 0.81, and 0.70 for dimensions one, two, three, and four, respectively. The ENRICH Marital Inventory is a reliable and valid instrument, the reliability of which was calculated as 0.75 through Cronbach’s alpha in this study.
After acquiring the confirmation of the Ethics Committee of the University and an introduction letter from the Faculty of Nursing and Midwifery, the researcher referred to the family health units of the selected healthcare centers every morning during the working hours. The participants were provided with the necessary explanations about the research objectives. Furthermore, they were informed about anonymity and confidentiality terms. Subsequently, the subjects who were willing to participate in the study and meeting the inclusion criteria completed the written informed consent form, and then filled out the other questionnaires. The duration required for completing the questionnaires was around 30 min. The sampling lasted for 4 months, more specifically from March 2013 to June 2014.
The data were analyzed in SPSS software (version 16). First, the normality of the variables was determined using the Kolmogorov-Smirnov test. In the next step, independent t-test, Mann-Whitney U test, as well as Pearson and Spearman correlation tests were utilized. A confidence interval of 95% and significance level of 0.05 were considered for all tests.
According to the results, the mean age of the participants was 30.49±5.28 years (age range: of 16-43 years). Regarding the education status, 7 (5.8%), 6 (5%), 32 (26.7%), and 75 (62.5%) participants had primary, middle school, high school, and academic education levels, respectively. To investigate the homogeneity of the demographic variables among the employed and housewife groups, first, the normality of the variables was checked, and then proper statistical tests were run (Table 1). Given the lack of any relationship between the demographic and main variables, t-test, and Mann-Whitney U test were used to compare the two groups.
Table 2 presents the extent of the difficulty of transition to parenthood among the employed women and housewives. Table 3 tabulates the data regarding the level of marital satisfaction among housewives and employed women.
Considering the normality of transition difficulty to parenthood in the two groups, the data were subjected to t-test. Accordingly, a significant difference was observed between the employed women and housewives regarding the extent of transition difficulty to parenthood (P=0.009). In this regard, transition to parenthood was more difficult for employed women than for the housewives. The mean scores of difficulty in transitioning to parenthood were 1.40±22.87 and 1.50±18.36 in the housewife and employed groups, respectively. However, the results of the Chi-square test revealed no significant difference between the two groups in terms of marital satisfaction (P=0.71).
Among the housewives, there was an inverse significant relationship between the extent of difficulty in transitioning to parenthood and marital satisfaction level (r=-0.60, P<0.05). In other words, as the difficulty of transition to parenthood increased, the extent of marital satisfaction decreased (Figure 1). A significant relationship was observed between transition difficulty to parenthood and the level of marital satisfaction among the employed women
(r=-0.43, P<0.05) (Figure 2).
There was a significant relationship between the difficulty of transition to parenthood and marital satisfaction among women and their spouses. Furthermore, the marital satisfaction of women was inversely associated with all dimensions of transition difficulty to parenthood, including the parental responsibilities and limitations, parental satisfaction and gratification, marital intimacy and stability, and personal commitment. This suggests that as the difficulty increased across the dimensions of transition to parenthood, the women’s marital satisfaction declined (Table 4).
The results of the Pearson correlation coefficient indicated no significant relationship between transition difficulty to parenthood and the variables of age, level of education, household income, duration of marital life, and desired pregnancy among housewives (P>0.05). However, the marital satisfaction was significantly associated with household income in this group (r=0.36, P=0.004). Accordingly, as the income enhanced, the extent of marital satisfaction increased. (Table 5).
Regarding the employed group, transition
difficulty to parenthood did not have any significant relationship with age, level of education, duration of marital life, pregnancy intentionality, and working hours of the woman (P>0.05). However, the household income demonstrated a significant relationship with the transition difficulty to parenthood among the employed women (P=0.014).
Furthermore, regarding the employed women, marital satisfaction did not have a significant association with the variables of age, education level, household income, duration of marital life, and working hours (P>0.05). Nonetheless, pregnancy intentionality showed a significant relationship with marital satisfaction (r=-0.35, P=0.006) (Table 5).
The aim of the current study was to determine the correlation between the difficulty of transition to parenthood and marital satisfaction and compare it between the employed women and housewives. As the findings indicated, there was an inverse significant relationship between the transition difficulty to parenthood and marital satisfaction both in employed women and housewives. In other words, as the difficulty of transition to parenthood increased, the extent of marital satisfaction diminished, which is inconsistent with the findings obtained by Muller et al. (2008). However, this finding was congruent with the results obtained by Doss et al. (2009), Lawrence et al. (2008), Cowan (1995), and Crohan (1996) (22, 23, 31, 32).
In a general conclusion, Muller stated that in the transition to parenthood period, the volume of housekeeping duties and stress of couples are the indicators of happiness in the relationships of the couples, who have recently become parents. One of the limitations of the mentioned study was the use of inaccurate instruments for the measurement of house workload experience and stress, which were more significant among women than among men (33).
Goldberg (2004) found that the difficulty of transition to parenthood decreased with the greater contribution of fathers to parental duties (34). Clover and Johnson (2007) stated that transition to parenthood stage does not cause disturbance and stress in relationships. Rather, the problems that previously existed become intensified at this stage, the resolution of which requires constructive communication skills (35-37). The difficulty of transition to parenthood was greater among the employed women than among the housewives, which is in accordance with the results obtained by Bayanchi et al. (2000) in the US (24). There was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of marital satisfaction.
To the best of our knowledge, no study has investigated the difficulty of transition to parenthood, specifically among employed women and housewives. Many women obtain merit and autonomy in performing an outdoor work, and their reason for feeling stressful is the loss of their professional identity (38, 39). Based on the literature, planned pregnancy and immersion in parental role are among the important factors for the satisfaction of both parents (40-42).
The difficulty of transition to parenthood showed no significant relationship with the variables of age, level of education, household income, duration of marital life, and desired pregnancy among the housewives. However, in terms of the employed women, the difficulty of transition to parenthood was directly correlated with the level of education and socioeconomic class of the woman. Accordingly, with the elevation of education status and social class, the difficulty of transition to parenthood increased.
In the present study, the marital satisfaction of women did not have any significant relationship with their age, level of education, socioeconomic class, and occupational status, which is in congruent with a study carried out by Kalmejin et al. (1999). In this regard, Kalmejin reported that the life of the employed women or those with higher education levels became instable after the birth of the first child since they had better extramarital economic options; moreover, these groups were reported to be more likely to quit an unfavorable marital relationship (43). However, in the present study, higher education levels and employment status did not have any relationship with marital satisfaction, which may be due to the special culture in our country.
Our findings also revealed that parental support was significantly associated with marital satisfaction and transition difficulty to parenthood across all women, which is not in accordance with the results obtained by Muller et al. in Sweden (2008). This discrepancy can be due to the difference in research context and the high level of welfare in Sweden. In Iran, the support offered by the family and acquaintances is more important than the support given by the society. Communication with familial networks is associated with positive consequences including physical and psychological welfare and social adaptation, thereby reducing depression in mothers with an infant (44-48).
Among the limitations of this research were the small sample size and environmental factors, such as light, heat, and noise. Attempts
were made to provide a quiet and peaceful environment for the research units to respond to the questionnaires. Restlessness and cry of the infants may have affected the responses of individuals and their accuracy. Therefore, it is suggested to perform further studies using a larger sample size and a longitudinal design to investigate the trend of changes in marital satisfaction, employed women across different occupational groups, and comparison of urban and rural women in this regard.
As the findings of the present study indicated, the employed women had more difficulty in transitioning to parenthood than the housewives. Regarding this, it is suggested to consider social facilities for essential training targeted toward the familiarization of couples with transition to parenthood period and enhancement of spousal supports, including emotional support or greater contribution in parental affairs.
This paper was adapted from a thesis submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Science in Midwifery with the number of 920690. The current study was approved by the Ethics Committee of Mashhad University of Medical Sciences, Mashhad, Iran, and conducted with the financial support of the Research Deputy. Hereby, the researchers extend their gratitude to the research deputy of this university for their support, the authorities in healthcare centers, and research participants for cooperating in this study.
Conflicts of interest
The authors declare no conflicts of interest.
Kuridhika kwa ndoa ni kiashiria muhimu cha furaha ya watu na maisha yao ya ndoa na ni moja ya mambo muhimu zaidi yanayoathiri uhifadhi na ukuaji wa familia. Kuridhika kwa ndoa inahusu hisia za lengo kuhusu kuridhika kwa mwanamke au mwanamume kuhusu nyanja zote za ndoa yao. Hali hii ya akili inajumuisha vipimo mbalimbali, ikiwa ni pamoja na mahusiano ya kingono, sifa za utu, mahusiano na wengine, ushiriki katika kufanya maamuzi, mahusiano na familia ya mwenzi, njia ya kutumia wakati wa burudani, na ushirika wa kidini. Olson anaamini kwamba kiwango cha kuridhika katika ndoa katika kila hatua ya mzunguko wa maisha ni tofauti. Schlesinger anaelezea mviringo tatu kwa dhana hii, ikiwa ni pamoja na kupungua kwa mstari baada ya kipindi cha honeymoon, mwelekeo wa mviringo wakati ambao familia haina watoto na uhuru ulioongezeka kama tukio muhimu zaidi, na hatimaye mviringo wa umbo la U unaohusishwa na kilele katika miaka ya mapema, kupungua wakati wa kuzaliwa kwa watoto, na hatimaye kuongezeka wakati watoto wanaondoka. Katika utafiti uliofanywa na Shakerian nchini Iran, asilimia 63.2 ya wanawake wenye afya walikuwa na matatizo katika mahusiano yao ya ndoa. Katika utafiti uliofanywa na Attari, 49.9% ya washiriki waliripoti kuwa na kiwango cha wastani cha kuridhika na mahusiano yao ya ndoa. Katika utafiti uliofanywa huko Tehran, Saadat Mousavi aligundua kuwa robo ya wanawake wenye kiwango cha elimu ya juu na theluthi moja ya wanawake wenye diploma walikuwa na hali mbaya na mbaya sana ya ndoa na walihitaji matibabu ya wenzi wa ndoa (8). Moja ya hatua muhimu zaidi ya mzunguko wa maisha ambayo ni ngumu na ngumu ni mpito kutoka ndoa hadi uzazi. Kujipatanisha na mwanachama mpya wa familia huambatana na matukio ya mabadiliko kadhaa katika nyanja zote za uhusiano wa ndoa (9-11). Mchakato wa "kubadilisha kuwa mzazi" huanza tangu kipindi cha kabla ya ujauzito. Kwa maneno mengine, huanza tangu siku ambazo wenzi wa ndoa hutarajia kuwa wazazi na kujifikiria wakiwa katika daraka hilo. Katika kipindi hiki, kuna hatua tisa: 1) uamuzi wa kupata mimba; 2) hatua za kimwili za ujauzito (kutotumia njia za kuzuia mimba); 3) ujauzito; 4) kuzaliwa; 5) wiki sita za kwanza baada ya kujifungua; 6) wiki sita hadi miezi sita baada ya kujifungua; 7) miezi sita hadi kumi na mbili baada ya kujifungua; 8) miezi kumi na miwili hadi kumi na nane ya mtoto; na 8) miezi kumi na nane ya mtoto. Kwa kawaida kuzaliwa kwa mtoto wa kwanza hutabiriwa kuwa wakati wa furaha na msisimko. Hata hivyo, suala la <unk>mabadiliko ya kuwa mzazi<unk> inaweza kuhusishwa na uchovu na kuchanganyikiwa kuhusu mabadiliko katika majukumu na mahusiano (13-6). Wakati wa mabadiliko ya hatua ya uzazi, mabadiliko katika mahusiano ya kingono husababisha kubadilika kwa urafiki wa kihisia, ambayo ni muhimu sana. Mambo kama vile kupungua kwa usingizi, haja kubwa ya mtoto mchanga kwa wazazi, na kuongezeka kwa ushiriki wa mama na mtoto mchanga, husababisha matatizo zaidi katika suala hili (18-20). Mama na baba wanapaswa kueleza wajibu wao na kuanzisha mchakato wa kuanzisha uhusiano na mtoto mchanga (13, 21). Katika masomo machache yaliyofanywa na Doss B. et al. Lawrence et al. (2009) Kwa mfano, wanandoa walio na watoto waliripoti kiwango cha chini cha kuridhika kingono na wakati mdogo wa shughuli za pamoja, ikilinganishwa na wale wasio na watoto. Mambo mbalimbali, ikiwa ni pamoja na hali ya mapato, afya ya watoto, kuridhika kingono, kuzaa, na hali ya ajira, huathiri uhusiano wa wanandoa katika maisha ya ndoa (24, 25). "Kwa mfano, ""kwa kuingia kwa wanawake katika kazi zenye mapato ya juu, mgawanyiko wa majukumu ya nyumbani na usawa katika mchango wa wanandoa wamegeuzwa kuwa mada muhimu kwa maoni ya haki.""" Mama wanaofanya kazi wanapaswa kulinganisha majukumu yao ya kazi na yale ya familia. Hata hivyo, hilo laweza kusababisha migogoro, kupungua kwa kuridhika na kazi, na utendaji duni katika kutimiza majukumu ya mama na ya mwenzi. Uchunguzi wa mara kwa mara umechunguza uhusiano kati ya kuridhika kwa ndoa na mgawanyiko wa kazi za nyumbani au majukumu ya uzazi kati ya wanawake wanaofanya kazi na wakazi wa nyumbani. Hata hivyo, kwa ujuzi wetu bora, hakuna utafiti kuchunguza uhusiano huu wakati wa mpito kwa kipindi cha uzazi, ambayo ni hatua ya kugeuka katika uhusiano wa wanandoa. Mabadiliko ya umri na furaha ya ndoa ni masuala muhimu sana kwa wanawake wanaofanya kazi na wanawake wa nyumbani, ambayo hatimaye huchangia kuimarisha mfumo wa familia. Kwa kuzingatia hali hii, utafiti huu ulifanywa kwa lengo la kuamua uhusiano kati ya ugumu wa mpito wa uzazi na kuridhika kwa ndoa kati ya wanawake wanaofanya kazi na wanawake wa nyumbani. Utafiti huu ulifanywa kwa wanawake 120 wa nyumbani na wanawake waliofanya kazi katika vituo vya huduma za afya vya Mashhad, Iran, mnamo 2014 kwa ajili ya ufuatiliaji wa afya ya watoto wachanga. Idadi ya watu wa utafiti ilichaguliwa kwa kutumia mbinu ya makundi ya hatua tatu. Katika suala hili, katika hatua ya kwanza, vituo vitano vya huduma za afya huko Mashhad vilizingatiwa kama madarasa. Katika hatua ya pili, vituo vya huduma za afya na misingi iliyofunikwa na kila moja ya vituo vitano vilichaguliwa kupitia jedwali la nambari za nasibu. Hatimaye, katika hatua ya tatu, kitengo cha utafiti alichaguliwa kwa njia ya mbinu ya urahisi sampuli. Kwa hivyo, kwa sababu ya hali ya afya, ni muhimu kuorodhesha vituo vya afya na vituo vya afya vilivyofunikwa na kila moja ya vituo vya afya 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 na Samen. Kisha, idadi ya watu waliofunikwa na kila moja ya madarasa ya huduma za afya iliamuliwa, na asilimia yake kwa idadi ya watu wote waliofunikwa na vituo vya huduma za afya ilihesabiwa. Baadaye, sehemu ya kila darasa katika ukubwa wote wa sampuli ilihesabiwa. Baadaye, idadi ya vituo vya huduma za afya zinazohitajika kama kundi ilihesabiwa kwa kutumia jedwali la nambari za nasibu. Mwishowe, idadi ya wanandoa wanaohitajika kutoka kila kituo cha huduma ya afya iliamuliwa, ambapo vituo vya huduma ya afya 14 vilifafanuliwa. Ukubwa wa sampuli iliamuliwa kwa kufanya utafiti wa awali kulingana na ambayo ukubwa wa mwisho wa sampuli ulikadiriwa kwa kutumia formula ya uhusiano. Washiriki waligawanywa katika vikundi viwili vya wanawake wa nyumbani na wafanyakazi kulingana na hali yao ya kazi. "Hatua za kujumuisha zilikuwa: (1) kusoma na kuandika, (2) hakuna historia ya magonjwa yoyote ya kisaikolojia (yaani, magonjwa ya mfumo wa neva, matumizi ya dawa za kisaikolojia, historia ya kulazwa katika hospitali ya kisaikolojia, na kuwa chini ya usimamizi wa daktari wa kisaikolojia au mshauri wa kisaikolojia), (3) hakuna historia ya magonjwa yoyote ya mwili yasiyoweza kutibiwa (kwa mfano, kansa, UKIMWI, chemotherapy, amputation, uharibifu wa uti wa mgongo, kupooza, upofu, upofu, upofu wa kusikia, na shida ya usemi).""" Kwa upande mwingine, washiriki ambao hawakuishi na wazazi wao au mwenzi wao waliondolewa katika utafiti huo. Kwa kuongezea, matukio ya tukio la kiwewe katika miezi mitatu iliyopita na maswali yasiyo kamili kwa zaidi ya 5% yalikuwa kati ya vigezo vingine vya kutengwa. "Kama ilivyoelezwa hapo juu, ""kiwango cha umri wa mtoto ni kati ya wiki 6 na miezi 6 kwa wanandoa wenye mtoto mmoja na kwa wanandoa wenye watoto wawili, umri wa mtoto wa kwanza ni chini ya miaka 8 na umri wa mtoto wa pili ni kati ya wiki 6 na miezi 6; hali ya afya (yaani, ukosefu wa magonjwa ya moyo, mapafu, figo, ugonjwa wa kisukari, ugonjwa wa kushuka kwa damu, ugonjwa wa akili au mwili, na magonjwa ya urithi).""" Utafiti huo ulijumuisha kipimo cha ugumu wa mabadiliko (kwa uzazi) (TDS, Steffen, 1982; Twiss, 1989), orodha ya ndoa ya ENRICH, na fomu ya idadi ya watu. TDS iliyobadilishwa hupima kiwango cha "ugumu wa mpito" uliopatikana na wazazi wapya. "Hii ni pamoja na ""masharti ya wazazi na mipaka, kuridhika na kuridhika kwa wazazi, ukaribu na uthabiti wa ndoa, na kujitolea kwa kibinafsi.""" TDS ni kiwango cha Likert cha 5 na alama za 50-109, 110-170 na 180-250 zinaonyesha kiwango cha chini, wastani, na kiwango cha juu cha ugumu katika mpito wa uzazi. Kiwango hiki ni chombo cha kawaida na halali, ambacho kimetumiwa nje ya nchi katika masomo tofauti (30-32). Kwa kuwa chombo hiki hakikuwa kimetumiwa nchini Iran hapo awali, kuegemea kwake na uhalali wake ulikadiriwa katika utafiti huu. Kwa kusudi hili, toleo la kutafsiriwa la kiwango hicho liligawanywa kati ya wanachama wa kitivo cha uuguzi na wauguzi, na vilevile maprofesa wa idara ya Kiingereza ili kuamua uhalali wa yaliyomo. Katika hatua iliyofuata, maelezo ya kurekebisha yalitumiwa katika chombo hicho. TDS ilitumiwa katika utafiti uliofanywa na Zelkowitz na Milet (1997) na ripoti ya uaminifu wa 0.75-82 kwa sub-scales zake nne. Kwa kuongezea, Muller et al. Kwa mfano, Cronbach alpha coefficient ni 0.81 na 0.65-0.82 kwa ajili ya chombo nzima na subscales yake. Katika utafiti wa sasa, kuegemea kwa kiwango hiki ilithibitishwa kwa kupata Cronbach's alpha coefficient ya 0.79. Kwa kuongezea, thamani hii ilikadiriwa kuwa 0.78, 0.74, 0.81, na 0.70 kwa vipimo moja, mbili, tatu, na nne, kwa mtiririko huo. "Kulingana na utafiti wa ENRICH, ""Uhakika wa ndoa ni muhimu sana kwa sababu inaonyesha kwamba kuna uwezekano mkubwa wa kuathiri maisha ya watu wengi, na kwa hivyo inapaswa kutegemea alpha ya Cronbach." Baada ya kupata uthibitisho wa Kamati ya Maadili ya Chuo Kikuu na barua ya utangulizi kutoka kwa Kitivo cha Uuguzi na Uuguzi, mtafiti alirejelea vitengo vya afya ya familia vya vituo vya huduma za afya vilivyochaguliwa kila asubuhi wakati wa masaa ya kazi. Washiriki walipewa maelezo muhimu kuhusu malengo ya utafiti. Zaidi ya hayo, walielezwa kuhusu hali ya kutokujulikana na usiri. Baada ya hapo, wagonjwa waliotaka kushiriki katika utafiti na kukidhi vigezo vya kuingizwa walijaza fomu ya maandishi ya idhini ya habari, na kisha wakajaza maswali mengine. Muda unaohitajika kwa ajili ya kukamilisha maswali ni dakika 30. Uchunguzi huo ulifanyika kwa kipindi cha miezi minne, yaani kuanzia Machi 2013 hadi Juni 2014. Takwimu hizo zilitathminiwa kwa kutumia programu ya SPSS (toleo la 16). Kwanza, kawaida ya vigezo iliamuliwa kwa kutumia mtihani wa Kolmogorov-Smirnov. Katika hatua inayofuata, t-mtihani huru, Mann-Whitney U mtihani, kama vile Pearson na Spearman mtihani uhusiano zilitumiwa. Kipindi cha uaminifu cha 95% na kiwango cha umuhimu wa 0.05 kilikuwa muhimu kwa vipimo vyote. Kulingana na matokeo, wastani wa umri wa washiriki ulikuwa miaka 30.49 ~ 5.28 (umri wa miaka 16-43). Kwa upande wa elimu, washiriki 7 (5,8%), 6 (5,2%), 32 (6,7%) na 75 (6,2%) walikuwa na kiwango cha elimu ya msingi, shule ya kati, shule ya sekondari na elimu ya kitaaluma. Ili kuchunguza homogeneity ya tofauti za idadi ya watu katika makundi ya wafanyakazi na wanawake wa nyumbani, kwanza, kawaida ya tofauti ilichunguzwa, na kisha vipimo sahihi vya takwimu vilifanywa (tazama 1). Kwa kuzingatia ukosefu wa uhusiano wowote kati ya idadi ya watu na vigezo kuu, t-mtihani, na Mann-Whitney U mtihani zilitumiwa kulinganisha makundi mawili. Tabla ya 2 inaonyesha kiwango cha ugumu wa mabadiliko ya kuwa mzazi miongoni mwa wanawake wanaofanya kazi na wanawake wa nyumbani. Katika meza ya tatu, data za kiwango cha kuridhika kwa ndoa kati ya wanawake wa nyumbani na wanawake wanaofanya kazi zinaonyeshwa. Kwa kuzingatia kawaida ya ugumu wa mpito kwa uzazi katika makundi mawili, data zilikuwa chini ya t-mtihani. Kwa hivyo, tofauti kubwa iligunduliwa kati ya wanawake wanaofanya kazi na mama wa nyumbani kuhusu kiwango cha ugumu wa mpito kwa uzazi (P = 0.009). Katika suala hili, mabadiliko ya kuwa wazazi yalikuwa magumu zaidi kwa wanawake wanaofanya kazi kuliko kwa wanawake wa nyumbani. Kwa upande wa wanawake, kiwango cha shida ya kuhamia kwa uzazi kilikuwa 1.40 + 22.87 na 1.50 + 18.36 katika kikundi cha wanawake wa nyumbani na kikundi cha wafanyikazi. Hata hivyo, matokeo ya mtihani wa Ki-square yalionyesha hakuna tofauti kubwa kati ya makundi mawili katika suala la kuridhika kwa ndoa (P = 0.71). Katika wanawake wa nyumbani, kulikuwa na uhusiano wa maana wa kinyume kati ya kiwango cha ugumu wa kuhamia kwa uzazi na kiwango cha kuridhika kwa ndoa (r = -0.60, P <0.05). Kwa maneno mengine, kadiri ugumu wa kuhamia kwa uzazi ulivyoongezeka, kiwango cha kuridhika kwa ndoa kilipungua (Sura ya 1). Kuna uhusiano mkubwa kati ya ugumu wa kuhamia kwa uzazi na kiwango cha kuridhika kwa ndoa kati ya wanawake wanaofanya kazi (R = 0.43; P < 0.05). Kulikuwa na uhusiano mkubwa kati ya ugumu wa mpito wa kuwa mzazi na kuridhika kwa ndoa miongoni mwa wanawake na wenzi wao. Kwa kuongezea, kuridhika kwa ndoa ya wanawake kulihusiana na vipimo vyote vya ugumu wa mpito wa uzazi, pamoja na majukumu na mapungufu ya wazazi, kuridhika na kuridhika kwa wazazi, ukaribu na uthabiti wa ndoa, na kujitolea kwa kibinafsi. Hii inaonyesha kwamba kama ugumu uliongezeka katika vipimo vya mpito wa uzazi, kuridhika kwa ndoa ya wanawake kulipungua (Taburi 4). Matokeo ya Pearson Coefficient ya Uhusiano yalionyesha hakuna uhusiano mkubwa kati ya ugumu wa mpito kwa uzazi na vigezo vya umri, kiwango cha elimu, mapato ya kaya, muda wa maisha ya ndoa, na ujauzito unaotakiwa kati ya wanawake wa nyumbani (P < 0.05). Hata hivyo, kuridhika kwa ndoa kulihusiana sana na mapato ya familia katika kikundi hiki (r = 0.36, P = 0.004). Kwa hiyo, kadiri mapato yalivyoongezeka, ndivyo kuridhika kwa wenzi wa ndoa kulivyoongezeka. (Taburi 5). Kwa upande wa wafanyakazi, ugumu wa kuhamia kwa uzazi haukuwa na uhusiano wowote muhimu na umri, kiwango cha elimu, muda wa maisha ya ndoa, nia ya ujauzito, na masaa ya kazi ya mwanamke (P < 0.05). Hata hivyo, mapato ya familia yalionyesha uhusiano mkubwa na ugumu wa mpito kwa uzazi miongoni mwa wanawake wanaofanya kazi (P = 0.014). Kwa kuongezea, kwa wanawake wanaofanya kazi, kuridhika kwa ndoa hakukuwa na uhusiano mkubwa na vigezo vya umri, kiwango cha elimu, mapato ya kaya, muda wa maisha ya ndoa, na masaa ya kazi (P> 0.05). Hata hivyo, nia ya ujauzito ilionyesha uhusiano muhimu na kuridhika kwa ndoa (r = -0.35, P = 0.006) (Taburi 5). Lengo la utafiti huu lilikuwa kuamua uhusiano kati ya ugumu wa mabadiliko ya kuwa mzazi na kuridhika kwa ndoa na kulinganisha kati ya wanawake wanaofanya kazi na wanawake wa nyumbani. Matokeo ya utafiti huo yalisema kuwa kuna uhusiano wa kulinganisha kati ya matatizo ya kuhamia kuwa mzazi na kuridhika kwa ndoa kwa wanawake wanaofanya kazi na wanawake wanaofanya kazi za nyumbani. Kwa maneno mengine, kama ugumu wa mabadiliko ya kuwa mzazi uliongezeka, kiwango cha kuridhika kwa ndoa kilipungua, ambayo haipatani na matokeo yaliyopatikana na Muller et al. (2008) na Hata hivyo, ugunduzi huu ulikuwa sawa na matokeo yaliyopatikana na Doss et al. Lawrence et al. (2009). (Cowan, 1995; Crohan, 1996; na wengine, 2008). Katika muhtasari wa jumla, Muller alisema kwamba katika kipindi cha mpito kwa wazazi, kiasi cha majukumu ya nyumbani na mkazo wa wanandoa ni viashiria vya furaha katika mahusiano ya wanandoa ambao wamekuwa wazazi hivi karibuni. Moja ya mapungufu ya utafiti huo ni matumizi ya vyombo vya kupima kazi za nyumbani na mkazo, ambayo ni muhimu zaidi kwa wanawake kuliko wanaume. Goldberg (2004) aligundua kuwa ugumu wa mabadiliko ya kuwa mzazi ulipungua na mchango mkubwa wa baba kwa majukumu ya uzazi. Clover na Johnson (2007) walisema kwamba mabadiliko ya hatua ya uzazi hayasababishi usumbufu na mkazo katika mahusiano. Kwa kweli, matatizo yaliyokuwapo hapo awali yanaongezeka katika hatua hii, ambayo ufumbuzi unahitaji ujuzi wa mawasiliano ya kujenga (35-37). Matatizo ya mabadiliko ya kuwa wazazi yalikuwa makubwa zaidi miongoni mwa wanawake wanaofanya kazi kuliko miongoni mwa wanawake wa nyumbani, ambayo ni sawa na matokeo yaliyopatikana na Bayanchi et al. Marekani (mwaka wa 2000) Hakukuwa na tofauti kubwa kati ya vikundi hivyo viwili katika kuridhika kwa ndoa. Kwa habari hii, hakuna utafiti uliochunguza ugumu wa mabadiliko ya kuwa mzazi, haswa kati ya wanawake wanaofanya kazi na wanawake wa nyumbani. Wanawake wengi hupata sifa na uhuru katika kufanya kazi ya nje, na sababu yao ya kujisikia mkazo ni kupoteza utambulisho wao wa kitaaluma (38, 39). Kulingana na maandishi, mimba iliyopangwa na kuzamishwa katika jukumu la wazazi ni miongoni mwa mambo muhimu kwa kuridhika kwa wazazi wote (40-42). Ugumu wa kuhamia kwa uzazi haukuonyesha uhusiano mkubwa na vigezo vya umri, kiwango cha elimu, mapato ya kaya, muda wa maisha ya ndoa, na ujauzito unaotakiwa kati ya wakazi wa nyumba. Hata hivyo, kwa upande wa wanawake wanaofanya kazi, ugumu wa mabadiliko ya kuwa wazazi ulihusiana moja kwa moja na kiwango cha elimu na darasa la kijamii na kiuchumi la mwanamke. Kwa hiyo, kadiri hali ya elimu na tabaka la kijamii ilivyopanda, ndivyo ugumu wa kugeuka kuwa mzazi ulivyoongezeka. Katika utafiti huu, kuridhika kwa ndoa ya wanawake hakukuwa na uhusiano wowote muhimu na umri wao, kiwango cha elimu, darasa la kijamii na kiuchumi, na hali ya kazi, ambayo ni sawa na utafiti uliofanywa na Kalmejin et al. (1999) na Katika suala hili, Kalmejin aliripoti kuwa maisha ya wanawake walioajiriwa au wale walio na viwango vya elimu ya juu yalibadilika baada ya kuzaliwa kwa mtoto wa kwanza, kwa kuwa walikuwa na chaguzi bora za kiuchumi nje ya ndoa; zaidi ya hayo, makundi haya yaliripotiwa kuwa na uwezekano mkubwa wa kuacha uhusiano mbaya wa ndoa. Hata hivyo, katika utafiti huu, viwango vya elimu ya juu na hali ya ajira hazikuwa na uhusiano wowote na kuridhika kwa ndoa, ambayo inaweza kuwa kutokana na utamaduni maalum nchini kwetu. Matokeo ya utafiti huo pia yalionyesha kwamba msaada wa wazazi ulihusiana sana na kuridhika kwa ndoa na ugumu wa mpito kwa uzazi kwa wanawake wote, ambayo haifai kulingana na matokeo yaliyopatikana na Muller na wenzake. Sweden (mwaka 2008). Tofauti hii inaweza kuwa kutokana na tofauti katika mazingira ya utafiti na kiwango cha juu cha ustawi nchini Sweden. Huko Iran, msaada unaotolewa na familia na marafiki ni muhimu zaidi kuliko msaada unaotolewa na jamii. Kuwasiliana na familia kunaweza kusaidia katika kuboresha afya ya mwili na kisaikolojia na kupunguza matatizo ya unyogovu kwa mama na mtoto mchanga. Miongoni mwa mapungufu ya utafiti huu yalikuwa ukubwa mdogo wa sampuli na mambo ya mazingira, kama vile nuru, joto, na kelele. Jitihada zilifanywa ili kutoa mazingira ya utulivu na amani kwa vitengo vya utafiti kujibu maswali. Huenda ukosefu wa utulivu na kilio cha watoto hao kilikuwa kimeathiri majibu ya watu hao na usahihi wao. Kwa hivyo, inashauriwa kufanya masomo zaidi kwa kutumia saizi kubwa ya sampuli na muundo wa urefu ili kuchunguza mwelekeo wa mabadiliko katika kuridhika kwa ndoa, wanawake waliofanya kazi katika vikundi tofauti vya kazi, na kulinganisha wanawake wa mijini na vijijini katika suala hili. Kama matokeo ya utafiti huu yalivyoonyesha, wanawake walioajiriwa walikuwa na ugumu zaidi katika mpito wa kuwa wazazi kuliko wanawake wa nyumbani. Kwa suala hili, inashauriwa kuzingatia vifaa vya kijamii kwa mafunzo muhimu yaliyolenga kuelekea kufahamiana kwa wanandoa na kipindi cha mpito wa uzazi na kuongeza msaada wa mwenzi, ikiwa ni pamoja na msaada wa kihisia au mchango mkubwa katika masuala ya uzazi. Mafunzo haya ni sehemu ya thesis iliyotolewa katika kutimiza sehemu ya mahitaji ya shahada ya uzamili katika midwifery na namba 920690. Utafiti huo ulikubaliwa na Kamati ya Maadili ya Chuo Kikuu cha Mashhad cha Sayansi ya Matibabu, Mashhad, Iran, na ulifanywa kwa msaada wa kifedha wa Naibu wa Utafiti. Kwa hivyo, watafiti wanamshukuru naibu mtafiti wa chuo kikuu hiki kwa msaada wao, mamlaka katika vituo vya huduma za afya, na washiriki wa utafiti kwa kushirikiana katika utafiti huu. Mapambano ya maslahi Waandishi wanatangaza hakuna mapambano ya maslahi.