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In an attempt to confirm experimentally Helene Deutsch's concept that vomiting
in pregnancy reflects maternal ambivalence, the authors conducted semistructured interviews with one hundred primiparas. Maternal feelings, derived solely from manifest material and scored by independent judges, were divided into 'clearly defined attitudes' with predominant desire or rejection and 'ambivalence' where both were expressed. Vomiting, which was moderate in fifty-three cases and severe in fourteen, showed statistical correlation solely with the ambivalent group. The authors admit these limitations of inference because of their reliance on nonanalytic content but feel the results are valid because all interview procedures involve a dialogue between two people.