Centre for Family Research.
J Fam Psychol. 2020 Jun;34(4):469-479. doi: 10.1037/fam0000619. Epub 2020 Jan 16.
The number of families being created through fertility treatment with donor eggs is increasing yearly. Women who conceive in this way share a gestational but not genetic relationship with their child, yet there is limited understanding of how mothers experience the mother-child relationship during its formative period, infancy. This study explored heterosexual mothers' thoughts and feelings about the mother-infant relationship in families created through egg donation. Qualitative interviews were conducted with a sample of 85 women who had conceived following egg donation treatment at U.K. fertility clinics. Mothers had at least 1 infant (6-18 months) and were living with the child's father. Interview data were analyzed according to the principles of thematic analysis. The results showed that egg donation mothers used a range of strategies across the transition to parenthood that enabled them to establish their identity as the child's mother and facilitated the process of helping them feel that the baby was their own. This process was individual to each woman, with the absent genetic connection varying in significance between mothers. The strategies employed enabled most mothers to adjust successfully to parenthood and manage any ambivalence and uncertainties associated with nongenetic parenthood. Most mothers felt secure and confident in their position as the child's mother by the end of the first year. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).
通过捐赠卵子进行生育治疗而创建的家庭数量正在逐年增加。以这种方式怀孕的女性与她们的孩子在妊娠期间拥有共同的关系，但对于母亲在婴儿期这一形成阶段的母子关系的体验，人们的了解有限。本研究探讨了通过卵子捐赠创建家庭的异性恋母亲对母婴关系的想法和感受。对英国生育诊所接受卵子捐赠治疗后怀孕的 85 名女性进行了定性访谈。母亲至少有 1 个婴儿（6-18 个月），并与孩子的父亲同住。根据主题分析的原则对访谈数据进行了分析。结果表明，卵子捐赠母亲在过渡到为人父母的过程中使用了一系列策略，使她们能够确立自己作为孩子母亲的身份，并帮助她们感到婴儿是自己的。这个过程是每个女人独有的，与母亲之间缺失的遗传联系的重要性因人而异。所采用的策略使大多数母亲能够成功地适应为人父母的生活，并应对与非亲生父母有关的任何矛盾心理和不确定性。大多数母亲在第一年结束时对自己作为孩子母亲的地位感到安全和自信。
