EFFECTIVENESS OF COGNITIVE BEHAVIOURAL THERAPY (CBT) AND INTERPERSONAL THERAPY (IPT) ON PREGNANCY RELATED STRESS AMONG WOMEN IN SOUTHWEST NIGERIA

Abstract

Pregnancy related stress (PRS), is negatively associated with pregnant women in southwest Nigeria. Pregnancy is a period of significant physiological, psychological, and social transformation in a woman’s life. This study, therefore, was carried out to investigate the effectiveness of cognitive behavioural therapy (cbt) and interpersonal therapy (ipt) on pregnancy-related stress among women in southwest, Nigeria. This study adopted a quasi-experimental pre-test, post-test, control group design. Sixty six  participants were selected from pregnancy women in southwest using multi-stage sampling procedure. The ages of the participants ranged between 28 and 45 years with a mean of 28.88 years (SD= 8.46). Three hypotheses were tested using Analysis of Covariance. The findings revealed a baseline differences in pregnancy-related stress, women who received CBT had significantly lower post-intervention stress levels than those who did not receive any therapy. The partial eta squared (.192) indicates a large effect size, showing that CBT had a meaningful impact in reducing pregnancy-related stress. Also the study showed that IPT was effective in reducing pregnancy-related stress compared to the control condition. Lastly, there is a significant difference between CBT and IPT in terms of effectiveness, with CBT being superior. It is recommended that Government should employ more teachers in other to ease teachers’ workload and job related stress. Government should provide a stable environment in which teachers and pupils can experience the kind of continuity that promotes healthy development.

Keywords: Pregnancy, stress, cognitive behavioural therapy, interpersonal therapy, pregnant women, Southwest Nigeria.

Ethics and Conflict of Interest

The author(s) affirm that this study was conducted in strict adherence to established ethical standards governing research involving human participants. Informed consent was obtained from all participants, ensuring voluntary participation, confidentiality, and the right to withdraw at any stage without penalty. The research protocol was reviewed and approved by an appropriate institutional ethics committee. All procedures complied with principles of beneficence, non-maleficence, and respect for participants’ dignity. Furthermore, the author(s) declare unequivocally that there are no financial, professional, or personal conflicts of interest that could have influenced the study’s design, execution, or reporting.

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