Infertility-related stress and quality of life
The role of experiential avoidance
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 21623528 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Carolina Barbosa (0000-0002-7535-9443, Universidade Portucalense), Susana Santos (0000-0001-5225-6671, Partners In Health, corresponding author), Juliana Pedro (0000-0003-0881-3447, Universidade do Porto) |
| Year | 2025 |
| Volume | 44 |
| Issue | 21 |
| Pages | 17243-17252 |
| Publication date | 2025-11-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | Yes |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Current Psychology (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 1046-1310 • E-ISSN: 1936-4733 |
| Publisher | Springer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.1007/s12144-025-08379-6 |
| OpenAlex | W4414100058 |
| Language | EN |
| References cited | 37 |
Infertility is a disease with impact on the individuals’ lives which can be perceived as a stress-inducing experience. Higher levels of infertility-related stress have been associated with lower levels of quality of life. The aim of this study was to examine experiential avoidance as a pathway through which infertility-related stress is linked to quality of life in women with fertility problems. This cross-sectional study was conducted with a sample of 285 Portuguese women ( M = 35.61; SD = 4.80) who completed a sociodemographic and clinical data sheet, and self-reported measures of infertility-related stress, experiential avoidance, and quality of life. The findings showed that infertility-related stress is positively associated with experiential avoidance and negatively associated with quality of life. Furthermore, experiential avoidance mediated the link between infertility-related stress and quality of life. Given that experiential avoidance may be a pathway leading to a worse adaptation, interventions focused on experiential avoidance may result in higher levels of quality of life in women dealing with fertility problems. Considering that this mechanism is a process underlying psychological inflexibility, which can be targeted by acceptance and commitment therapy, this therapy might be beneficial for women dealing with fertility problems, contributing to an improved quality of life
Experiential avoidance · Experiential learning · Fertility · Infertility · Psychological intervention · Assisted Reproductive Technology and Twin Pregnancy · Family Dynamics and Relationships · Reproductive Health and Technologies
Measuring experiential avoidance
The Impact of Infertility on the Psychological Well-Being, Marital Relationships, Sexual Relationships, and Quality of Life of Couples
The empirical status of acceptance and commitment therapy
National, Regional, and Global Trends in Infertility Prevalence Since 1990
Experiential avoidance as a generalized psychological vulnerability
Defining and measuring “psychological flexibility”
The International Glossary on Infertility and Fertility Care, 2017†‡§
Psychological flexibility
The Eurohis-QOL 8-item index
G*Power 3
Statistical power analyses using G*Power 3.1
SPSS and SAS procedures for estimating indirect effects in simple mediation models
Preliminary Psychometric Properties of the Acceptance and Action Questionnaire–II
Required Sample Size to Detect the Mediated Effect
Addressing Moderated Mediation Hypotheses
The Acceptance and Action Questionnaire-II (AAQ-II) as a measure of experiential avoidance
Comparison of three infertility-specific measures in men and women going through assisted reproductive technology treatment
| Citation velocity | historical |
|---|---|
| Highly cited | No |