The effect of personality traits of pregnant women on the COVID-19 stress level

INTRODUCTION: This study aims to ascertain the effect of personality traits of pregnant women on the stress level related to the COVID-19 pandemic.
METHODS: This descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted between March and June 2022 with a sample of 253 pregnant women who met the inclusion criteria. A descriptive information form, COVID-19 stress scale, and the Five-Factor Personality Inventory were utilized to collect data. The statistical significance threshold was set at p<0.05 after data analysis.
RESULTS: The mean age of the pregnant women participating in the study was 29.53±5.49 years, and the average duration of education was 10.76±3.77 years. It was found that 15% of the pregnant women experienced pregnancy-related problems during the pandemic, 23.3% had their pregnancies adversely affected, 25.7% were subjected to social isolation, and 32.4% were placed in quarantine. Pregnant women scored high on the danger and contamination fear subscale of the COVID-19 stress scale. COVID-19 stress levels were significantly higher in pregnant women with introverted and neurotic personality traits (p<0.05) and significantly lower in pregnant women with extraverted and emotionally stable personality traits (p<0.05).
DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSION: Overall, it can be stated that pregnant women experienced stress related to COVID-19 and that their personality traits influenced their COVID-19 stress levels. Furthermore, stress related to COVID-19 was found to decrease in pregnant women with emotionally stable and extraverted personality traits, while the COVID-19 stress level significantly increased in pregnant women with introverted and neurotic personality traits.