A Mixed Methods Research to Develop an Attachment Test of First-time Adolescent Mothers to their Children
Keywords:
First-time adolescent mother, Attachment, Attachment scale, Mixed methods researchAbstract
The objective of this research was to develop an accurate and reliable attachment test for first-time adolescent mothers and their infant using an exploratory sequential mixed-methods research design. The researcher used a qualitative method to study the attachment between first-time adolescent mothers and their infant. The result of quantitative method purposed to develop the attachment scale for first-time adolescent mothers and their infant. The qualitative revealed that the mother-infant attachment consisted of 2 components; emotional attachment and behavioral attachment, which affected the relationship in both negative and positive ways. Attachment behaviors of first-time adolescent mothers to their children included responding to physical needs, concerning about children’s mental wellbeing, providing a sense of feeling safe and secure, dissolving mothers’ own negative emotions caused by childcare and searching for information about childcare. The findings from the qualitative study were used to create an adolescent mother-infant attachment measurement instrument. The instrument showed the acceptable reliability in each and overall components; emotional attachment = .78, behavioral attachment = .84 and overall attachment = .89.
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