Developing a psychometric scale to measure motherhood stress among newly working mothers in Indias IT sector

Title

Developing a psychometric scale to measure motherhood stress among newly working mothers in Indias IT sector

Creator

Menon, Vani; Annamalai, Sumathi

Description

While becoming a mother is an incredible blessing, it can also be a very stressful time for women. India has a unique cultural and economic diversity, with women facing distinct challenges in their role as new mothers, including family obligations and a tendency toward a patriarchal mindset. This research aims to identify the unique stress factors related to motherhood stress for a new working mother in the IT sector and to create a scale to measure these factors. The study employed a mix of qualitative methods, such as focus group discussions, and quantitative research methods, including a pilot survey among 115 mothers, to develop a new scale for motherhood stress. Four main factors were identified through exploratory factor analysis: career-related stress, adequacy of support systems, maternal guilt, and self-efficacy. A new 31-item scale is proposed. Internal consistency, reliability, and validity were established for all items on the scale, with a KMO value of 0.826 and a Cronbach's alpha of 0.840. This new scale will be a useful tool for organizations to understand motherhood stress among newly working mothers and to adopt practices that reduce stress and address prejudices through interventions such as anti-discrimination policies, managerial sensitization, flexible work options, career counseling, and peer support. For policymakers, this study highlights the need for an industrial policy that recognizes the cultural setting and the unique challenges faced by Indian working mothers, as well as the importance of rigorous enforcement of maternity policies to ensure equitable treatment for them. 2026 AESS Publications. All Rights Reserved.

Source

Journal of Asian Scientific Research;Volume;16;Issue;1;pp.269-284

Date

01-01-2025

Publisher

Asian Economic and Social Society

Subject

Factor analysis; Idiosyncratic deals; Motherhood stress measurement; Organizational behavior; Psychometric validation; Stress scale; Working mothers

Coverage

Menon V., School of Business and Management, Christ University, Bannerghata Road, Bangalore, 560076, India; Annamalai S., School of Business and Management, Christ University, Bannerghata Road, Bangalore, 560076, India

Rights

All Open Access; Gold Open Access

Relation

ISSN: 22265724;

Format

online

Language

English

Type

Article

Identifier

https://doi.org/10.55493/5003.v16i1.5881

https://www.scopus.com/pages/publications/105029801069?origin=resultslist