Parental leave

Prenatal & Perinatal Stress
It is difficult to establish, measure and define causal links between maternal stress and anxiety during pregnancy and birth outcomes.  Pregnant women assess their levels of stress according to a variety of factors, such as their personality type, disposition and whether the source of their stress is perceived as internal or external.

Stress during pregnancy has been linked to various developmental outcomes in children: reduced early attention and motor maturity, slower learning and impaired emotion regulation in offspring. Research also indicates that stress is not always harmful and that a certain degree of stimulation and activation may be beneficial for development. In addition, maternal depression after pregnancy is a significant risk factor linked to adverse psychosocial outcomes in children. The implications of maternal stress on the postnatal environment may be of greater consequence than the biological effects of prenatal exposure.

Parental Leave
Studies on parental leave and children’s well-being suggest that early maternal employment (within the child’s first year of life):

• is associated with increased behaviour problems in children (at age four);
• is associated with slightly lowered scores in measures of language, cognitive development and academic achievement in later years;
• may be disadvantageous for children from middle- to upper-income two-parent families; and beneficial for children from low-income and single-mother households on measures of language and cognitive development at age four.

Additional studies have demonstrated that paid leave is associated with reduced rates of infant and child mortality, and maternal health and well-being are more strongly associated with the mother’s role satisfaction and the support received from spouse and society.

See also...

• How important is it?
• What can be done?
• According to experts
  
  
• Stress (prenatal and perinatal)