 Participants’ experience of the STEP program: A prenatal intervention for women with histories of childhood maltreatment 
Background : The STEP program is a prenatal group intervention for pregnant women who experienced childhood interpersonal traumas such as child abuse or neglect. The study aims to document participants’ experience of their participation in the program. Methods : Individual interviews were conducted with 21 participants who had completed the program in order to assess their appreciation of the intervention, the match between the content and their expectations, the strengths and weaknesses of the program, its sensitivity to their personal, familial and cultural realities, and the importance they attributed to the various themes addressed. Results : Participants perceived the STEP program as a unique opportunity for self-exploration as an individual and as a mother, and considered that the program promoted a subjective sense of well-being. Three dimensions were identified as being at the heart of this experience: (1) the content of the program was perceived as sensitive, balanced, concrete and progressive, (2) the collective of mothers promoted the socialization of motherhood, perspective-taking, exchanges and self-validation, and (3) the secure intervention framework was perceived through the benevolence, competence, and cohesion of the facilitators as well as through the reciprocity established between the facilitators and the participants. Discussion : Pregnant women who have experienced childhood interpersonal traumas perceived that the STEP program met their needs and that its components promoted a deeper, more serene experience of their pregnancy and a better readiness to welcome their child.