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Rasa bersalah ibu adalah pengalaman emosional umum di kalangan ibu bekerja, yang sering dikaitkan dengan tantangan dalam memenuhi peran profesional dan pengasuhan. Ibu bekerja menghadapi tekanan karena beban kerja, jadwal kerja, dan tantangan target kinerja yang dapat membuat ibu rentan terhadap perasaan bersalah ketika tanggung jawab keluarga merasa terabaikan/diabaikan.

Studi naratif pada 31 artikel ilmiah yang dipublikasikan pada 2010 – 2026 menghasilkan lima tema yang saling terkait: (1) konseptualisasi rasa bersalah ibu sebagai emosi yang melibatkan kesadaran diri (self-conscious emotion) yang muncul akibat kesenjangan antara diri aktual dan diri ideal yang seharusnya (actual–ought self-discrepancies); (2) ekspektasi sosiokultural dan ideologi pengasuhan intensif (intensive mothering); (3) konteks munculnya rasa bersalah ibu, termasuk konflik pekerjaan-keluarga dan praktik pemberian makan bayi; (4) kaitannya dengan kecemasan, depresi, kelelahan emosional, dan penurunan kesejahteraan; serta (5) faktor-faktor pelindung seperti dukungan sosial, keterlibatan dalam pengasuhan bersama (co-parenting), dan efikasi diri dalam pengasuhan.

Penelitian terkini memperluas gambaran peran mekanisme kognitif. Law dkk. (2021) menunjukkan bahwa pikiran negatif yang umum terjadi pada masa awal menjadi ibu; khususnya kognisi yang bersifat mengkritik diri sendiri dan berkaitan dengan rasa bersalah; pikiran negatif menjadi prediktor bagi munculnya rasa bersalah maupun rasa malu; selain itu, kombinasi antara pikiran negatif dan harapan yang tidak terpenuhi terbukti secara signifikan memprediksi gejala depresi.

Penelitian empiris juga mengindikasikan bahwa rasa bersalah pada ibu berkaitan erat dengan ekspektasi budaya mengenai sosok ibu yang ideal. Studi mengenai norma pengasuhan intensif menunjukkan bahwa para ibu yang sangat meyakini ideologi “ibu yang baik” melaporkan tingkat tekanan psikologis yang lebih tinggi, termasuk depresi, kecemasan, dan kepuasan hidup yang lebih rendah (Henderson dkk., 2016; Rizzo dkk., 2013). Selain itu, studi yang meneliti rasa bersalah terkait konflik peran dan pekerjaan menunjukkan bahwa fluktuasi harian dalam rasa bersalah berhubungan dengan suasana hati yang lebih buruk dan kesejahteraan yang menurun pada ibu yang bekerja (Aarntzen dkk., 2019). Perasaan bersalah akibat konflik peran dapat berkontribusi pada stres kronis dan kelelahan emosional (Borelli dkk., 2017; Maclean dkk., 2021). Dalam beberapa kasus, rasa bersalah juga dapat memengaruhi keputusan hidup para ibu. Sebagian ibu melaporkan pengurangan jam kerja, pengorbanan waktu pribadi, atau memprioritaskan pengasuhan anak dibandingkan tujuan karier sebagai upaya untuk mengurangi rasa bersalah. Meskipun penyesuaian semacam itu dapat meredakan ketidaknyamanan emosional untuk sementara waktu, hal tersebut juga dapat membatasi pengembangan diri, mengurangi otonomi finansial, serta memperkuat pola pengasuhan yang berbasis gender (Aarntzen dkk., 2019; Hennekam dkk., 2019).

Simpulan

Temuan ini memberikan implikasi konkret bagi skrining kesehatan mental perinatal, intervensi berbasis welas asih terhadap diri sendiri (self-compassion), dan kebijakan tempat kerja yang mendukung keluarga. Memahami rasa bersalah ibu sebagai mekanisme utama yang menghubungkan ekspektasi sosiokultural dengan kesehatan mental perempuan merupakan hal penting dalam upaya meningkatkan kesejahteraan ibu.

Penulis: Prof. Dr. Nurul Hartini, S.Psi, M.Kes

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