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. 2020 Jun 15;20:300. doi: 10.1186/s12888-020-02669-y

Table 3.

Description of demographic and clinical variables at inclusion for the groups receiving the Newborn Behavioral Observation (NBO) and care as usual (n = 196)

Variable NBO
(n = 82)
Comparison group
(n = 114)
Test statistic
(t or χ2)
p-value Effect size
(Cohen’s D or Cramer’s V)
Mean age in years (SD)a 31.00 (3.96) 31.14 (4.46) 0.23 .82 .033
Marital status, n (%)
 Married or cohabiting 81 (98.8) 109 (95.6) 1.61 .20 .233
Education, n (%)a 4.84 .08 .701
 Upper secondary school or less 12 (14.6) 10 (8.8)
  < 4 years higher education 29 (35.4) 29 (25.4)
  ≥ 4 years higher education 41 (50.0) 74 (64.9)
Work status before pregnancya 5.04 .41
 Full-time 70 (85.4) 99 (86.8)
 Part-time 3 (3.7) 0
 Student 7 (8.5) 10 (8.8)
 Homemaker 0 1 (0.9)
 Unemployed 1 (1.2) 1 (0.9)
 Sick leave or disability benefits 1 (1.2) 2 (1.8)
Family income, n (%)b 2.32 .31
  ≤ 350,000 NOK (38,799 USD) 6 (7.3) 3 (2.6)
 351,000–750,000 NOK (38,910–83,141 USD) 21 (25.6) 29 (25.4)
  ≥ 751,000 NOK (83,252 USD) 55 (67.1) 80 (70.2)
Wanted pregnancy, n (%)d 79 (96.3) 108 (94.7) 0.28 .59
Parenting experience, n (%) 0.45 .80
 First-time mother 38 (46.3) 57 (50.0)
 Second-time mother 37 (45.1) 46 (40.4)
 Two or more previous children 7 (8.5) 11 (9.6)
Mental health, n (%)
 Lifetime mental health problems 28 (34.1) 40 (35.1) 0.02 .89 .003
 Previous depressive symptomse 28 (34.1) 36 (31.6) 0.14 .70 .02
 Contact with mental health services 24 (29.3) 36 (31.6) 0.12 .73 .017
Physical health, n (%) 1.10 .58
 Pregnancy-related physical health problemsa 25 (30.5) 37 (32.5) 0.08 .77
 Other physical health problemsc 8 (9.8) 16 (14.0) 0.81 .37
Social support, n (%)
 Family can help when in need 74 (90.2) 109 (95.6) 2.22 .14 .322
 Friends can help when in need 72 (87.8) 104 (91.2) 0.61 .43 .088
 Can confide in family 73 (89.0) 95 (83.3) 1.26 .26 .182
 Can confide in friends 75 (91.5) 109 (95.6) 1.43 .23 .207
Clinical questionnaires, M (SD)
 Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale 4.30 (3.09) 4.66 (3.81) 0.50 .61 .072
 Beck Depression Inventory-II 7.79 (4.15) 7.98 (5.89) 0.20 .84 .029
 Pregnancy-Related Anxiety Questionnaire 23.26 (7.55) 23.55 (8.34) 0.25 .80 .036
 Adverse Childhood Experiences 0.79 (1.37) 0.98 (1.67) 0.75 .45 .109
 Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale 73.63 (7.67) 74.86 (6.88) 0.56 .57 .081

Missing data: an = 1, bn = 2, cn = 3, dn = 4, ePrevious experience with being depressed most of the day, almost each day for a period of two weeks