Objectives: This paper explores the relationship between perceptions of prenatal control, expectations for childbirth, and experienced control in labour and birth and how they individually and collectively affect birth satisfaction.
Design: A repeated measures exploratory study was conducted with 31 primiparous women between 26 and 40 weeks pregnant. Standardised interviews were conducted prior to birth to assess levels of prenatal control and expectations for control during childbirth. Six weeks after the birth, women were interviewed again to assess experiences of control and birth satisfaction.
Setting: Prenatal clinic, North Carolina, USA.
Findings: Results show experienced control to be a significant predictor of birth satisfaction, with high levels of control correlating with high satisfaction levels. However, no correlations were found between the three aspects of control, and both prenatal control and birth expectations were found to have no significant effect on birth satisfaction. Findings also indicate that women cared for by midwives have significantly higher experienced control and birth satisfaction than women whose care was provided by obstetricians, while incidence of caesarean birth did not affect either measure.
Conclusions: Experienced control during labour and birth is an important predictor of birth satisfaction. Health care providers should collaborate with the women they care for to use techniques that maximize the experience of control especially during labour and birth.
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