Cognitive appraisal of stress events: measuring the personal schema of childbirth.

The purpose of this study was to theoretically base, develop, and test items for the Childbirth Schema Scale. The scale was designed to obtain an understanding of schema formation and revision with the known stressor of childbirth. The psychometric properties of the instrument were assessed using a sample of childbearing women, surveyed before and after birth. A principal components analysis with varimax rotation resulted in a four-factor solution supporting the theoretical factors of emotions of outcome, sensations of work, time, and preparation for control. Construct validity was assessed by hypothesis testing that women whose prebirth schemas were least like their real experience would use more review than women whose schemas were closer. A significant t test between the two groups provided some evidence of validity. The factors were used to form subscales. Internal consistency scores for each subscale were .73, .70, .84, and .65, respectively.