Social support and the early maternal experience of primiparas over 35.

Social support and the early maternal experience were examined in 91 first-time mothers over 35 years of age, using the Norbeck Social Support Questionnaire (Norbeck, Lindsey, & Carrieri, 1981, 1983) Parenting Support Questions, the Parenting Network Scale, and the What Being the Parent of a Baby is Like Scale (Pridham & Chang, 1989). Data were collected in the last trimester of pregnancy and at 1 month postpartum. The greatest amount of support came from spouse, friends, and family. Subtle changes occurred in social support with decreases in number of network members and functional scores, and increases in number of members with children under 2 years of age. Social support from spouse and family was associated with both positive self-evaluation in parenting and lower stress postpartum.