Fear of Childbirth

The PARLab is interested in finding an accurate measurement of fear of childbirth that identifies those who are experiencing clinical levels of fear and finding potential targets for treatment. It is important to better understand fear of childbirth because it is associated with various negative outcomes during and after pregnancy. 

Childbirth Fear Questionnaire (CFQ)

The PAR Lab team developed the Childbirth Fear Questionnaire (CFQ) as a screening tool. We aimed to develop a measure that improves the detection clinically significant fear of childbirth in women, recognizes the complexity of childbirth fear, and assesses fear of both vaginal and Caesarean birth.

The Childbirth Fear Questionnaire is currently available in the following languages:

To learn more about the research behind these questionnaires:

Screening for Perinatal Anxiety Using the Childbirth Fear Questionnaire

Learn more about our measure of fear of childbirth: The Childbirth Fear Questionnaire (CFQ). The CFQ is a 40-item, 9-subscale measure with an additional 7-item interference subscale. We hope the CFQ will be useful to researchers and clinicians. Access the article here.

The Childbirth Fear Questionnaire and the Wijma Delivery Expectancy Questionnaire as Screening Tools for Specific Phobia, Fear of Childbirth

This study evaluates the accuracy of the Childbirth Fear Questionnaire (CFQ) and the Wijma Delivery Expectations Questionnaire (W-DEQ) of Fear of Childbirth as screening tools for a specific phobia, Fear of Childbirth. Results suggests that the Wijma Delivery Expectations Questionnaire (W-DEQ) performs well as a screening tool for fear of childbirth in pregnant people. The Childbirth Fear Questionnaire (CFQ) performs less well, but nevertheless holds promise! Access the article here.