The Mothers on Respect (MOR) Index is a 14-item self-report measure on individual experiences of respectful or disrespectful care from maternity care providers. Different aspects of respectful care captured by the scale include ease of communication with provider, patient autonomy, and perception of discriminatory practices.
Geographies Tested: Canada
Populations Included: Female
Age Range: Adults
Overall while making decisions during my pregnancy I felt:
1. Comfortable asking questions
2. Comfortable declining care that was offered
3. Comfortable accepting the options for care that my (midwife, doctor) recommended
4. Coerced into accepting the options my (midwife, doctor) suggested (reverse scored)*
5. I chose the care options that I received
6. My personal preferences were respected
7. My cultural preferences were respected
Response Options:
Yes
No
Not applicable
During a prenatal visit I held back from asking questions or discussing my concerns:
8. Because my (midwife, doctor) seemed rushed (reverse scored)
9. Because I wanted maternity care that differed from what my (midwife, doctor) recommended (reverse scored)
10. Because I thought my (midwife, doctor) might think I was being difficult (reverse scored)
Response Options:
Yes, once
Yes, more than once
No
Never
When I had my baby I felt that I was treated poorly by my (midwife, doctor):
11. Because of my race, ethnicity, cultural background or language (reverse scored)
12. Because of my sexual orientation andor gender identity (reverse scored)
13. Because of my health insurance (reverse scored)
14. Because of a difference in opinion with my caregivers about the right care for myself or my baby (reverse scored)
Response Options:
Never
Sometimes
Usually
Always
*This item was re-phrased when administered to the United States sample. The word “coerced” was replaced with “pushed”.
Note: For the United States sample, the 14-item MORi scale with harmonized Likert-scale response options was used:
6-point Likert scale
Strongly disagree - 1
Strongly agree - 6
Items are scored such that higher scores reflect more respectful interactions with maternity care providers. For items 8-10, “Yes, once” or “Yes, more than once” are recoded as “Yes”, and “No” and “Never’ recoded as “No”. For items 11-14, “Never” is recoded as “No”, and “Sometimes”, “Usually”, or “Always” recoded as “Yes”.
Vedam, S., Stoll, K., Rubashkin, N., Martin, K., Miller-Vedam, Z., Hayes-Klein, H., & Jolicoeur, G. (2017). The mothers on respect (MOR) index: measuring quality, safety, and human rights in childbirth. SSM-population health, 3, 201-210. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ssmph.2017.01.005
Psychometric Score
Ease of Use Score
Formative ResearchQualitative Research
Existing Literature/Theoretical Framework
Field Expert Input
Cognitive Interviews / Pilot Testing
ReliabilityInternal
Test-retest
Interrater
ValidityContent
Face
Criterion (gold-standard)
Construct
KEY
Ease of UseReadability
Scoring Clarity
Length
Evidence-based Measures of Empowerment for Research on Gender Equality (EMERGE)
Copyright 2023 – All Rights Reserved
to get the latest updates on new measures and guidance for survey researchers