Maternal bonding was described as a qualitative change in the relationship of a mother with her infant. By this study, the investigators aimed to investigate the mother-infant bonding and the factors affecting it, from the point of the family practice, which is responsible for the healthcare of all family members from the fetus to the eldest individual in a family.

The study was carried out as a single-centered descriptive research among 73 women at the postpartum period. The sociodemographic status and the histories of pregnancies of the study participants were recorded. The Maternal Attachment Inventory (MAI), which questions the biological, psychological and social factors, and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) were used to collect data to determine the factors affecting the mother-infant bonding in the postpartum period.

The study is a descriptive survey study, which was conducted to determine the mother-infant attachment and its affecting factors in mothers in the first 6-week of the postpartum period. In order to conduct the study, the local Ethics Committee approval was obtained. (Approval date: 24.11.2016, number 18517).

The mean score of the Turkish version of the Maternal Attachment Inventory (MAI) is approximately 95+6 according to the validation study. In our study, considering that the average MAI score of the participants would be approximately 97, investigators determined to include 73 patients in the study with a type I error set at a=0.05 and with the power of (1-b) 80%.

The universe of the study consists of the mothers in the first 6 weeks of the postpartum period presenting to the Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic and the mothers of the pediatric patients presenting to the Pediatric Clinic of the Health Sciences University Umraniye Education and Research Hospital.

Inclusion Criteria:

• Women who gave birth in 6 weeks
• Women who had no mental illness history
• Women who had no health issue
• Women who accepted to join the study
• Women who can communicate

Exclusion Criteria:

• The women who did not have the features below the inclusion criteria

The universe of the study consists of the mothers in the first 6 weeks of the postpartum period presenting to the Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic and the mothers of the pediatric patients presenting to the Pediatric Clinic of the Health Sciences University Umraniye Training and Research Hospital.