When you fall pregnant, it is often a time of speculation about whether you’re having a boy or a girl. You might be excited to find out what you’re having through ultrasound or wait to find out at birth. You get asked what you’re having. And even if you choose not to share this information, people will guess for you. They might do this based on pregnancy symptoms such as carrying high or low, morning sickness, the type of food cravings you’re having, and more. And sometimes, you just know or have a feeling about whether you’re having a boy or girl.
One interesting study explored whether a woman’s intuition regarding their baby’s gender was correct or not (McFadzen, Dielentheis, Kasten, Singh, & Grundle, 2017). Women attending an obstetrics clinic for ultrasound were asked if they had a feeling about their baby’s gender; 411 women (40%) said they did. Their prediction was compared to their ultrasound results. The findings? Mum’s intuition predicted gender correctly 51% of the time. The study noted that women who reported a strong intuition did a bit better (correctly predicting baby’s gender 62% of the time). Still, this outcome was not a significant improvement (statistically). The study’s authors concluded that intuition performed the same as guessing or flipping a coin.
Did you have a feeling about your baby’s gender? Were you right or wrong?
References
McFadzen, M., Dielentheis, D. P., Kasten, R., Singh, M., & Grundle, J. (2017). Maternal Intuition of Fetal Gender. Journal of patient-centered research and reviews, 4, 125-130. doi:10.17294/2330-0698.1454