The Effect of Emotional Freedom Technique on Parents' Anxiety Level: Newborn Hearing Screening

Newborn hearing screening (NHS) is a standard procedure that often triggers acute anxiety in parents. While Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) has demonstrated efficacy in reducing psychological distress across various clinical settings, its specific application to maternal anxiety during the neonatal screening period remains under-researched. This study addresses this gap by investigating the impact of a targeted EFT intervention on anxiety levels in mothers awaiting their newborns' first hearing tests. The primary objective is to determine if a brief, 15-minute EFT session reduces maternal anxiety more effectively than a standard waiting period. Participants were randomly assigned to either an intervention group, where they perform a structured acupoint tapping sequence, or a control group that received no active intervention. Anxiety was assessed using validated scales immediately before and after the 15-minute period to capture acute changes in distress. Due to clinical environment conditions and hospital accompaniment patterns, the study was completed with a final sample of 70 mothers.