Evaluating the Effectiveness of an Obstetric Violence Awareness Education for Midwifery Students: A Quasi-Experimental Pilot Study

Abstract

Objective: Obstetric violence is a prevalent yet often overlooked problem in maternity care. This study aimed to examine the effectiveness of an awareness-based education program in improving midwifery students’ perceptions of childbirth violence.

Methods: This quasi-experimental study employed a pilot single-group pre-test–posttest design. Forty-two final-year midwifery students from a university in Türkiye participated. Data were collected between May 22, 2025 and May 23, 2025, and data were analyzed using IBM SPSS Statistics 23.0. Students completed the obstetric violence awareness scale (OVAS) before and after a structured training session incorporating case-based scenarios, role-play, ethical discussions, and group reflections.

Results: Posttraining, students demonstrated significant improvements in recognizing intrapartum mistreatment, non-evidence-based practices, lack of consent, and restricted accompaniment rights (P < .005). Increased awareness of postpartum mistreatment indicated that students began to question previously normalized practices. The total score increase was not statistically significant.

Conclusion: The education program enhanced students’ ability to identify and critically reflect on obstetric violence. Incorporating such training into midwifery curricula could promote respectful, rights-based, and woman-centered maternity care. The findings indicate that the training achieved its intended goal of increasing students’ awareness and critical understanding of obstetric violence.

Cite this article as: Gökçek Aİ. Evaluating the effectiveness of an obstetric violence awareness education for midwifery students: a quasi-experimental pilot study. Arch Health Sci Res. 2026, 13, 0158, doi:10.5152/ArcHealthSciRes.2026.25158.