A comprehensive model of women’s social cognition and responsiveness to infant crying: Integrating personality,emotion, executive function,and sleep

Disparate lines of research suggest that women’s (a) emotion regulation and personality, (b) executive function and (c) sleep may be important predictors of mothers’ cry responding in part through their effects on social cognition. However, the extent to which each contributes to cry responding independently remains unknown. We examined this question in a convenience sample of 109 nulliparous undergraduate women. Women completed online surveys to assess personality and emotion dysregulation traits, then visited the lab for a testing session during which they reported on sleep the night before and reactions to videotapes of crying infants and completed computerized working memory and inhibitory control tasks under challenging noise conditions (exposure to traffic and cry sounds). Results indicate that women’s positive personality and higher working memory were associated with higher levels of infant-oriented cry processing (i.e., accurate distress detection, empathy and situational/emotional attributions about distress), which in turn was associated with higher intended responsiveness to infant crying. Emotion dysregulation and deficits in inhibitory control were associated with higher levels of self-oriented cry processing (i.e., anger, anxiety, negative and emotion minimizing attributions in response to infant distress), which in turn was associated with lower cry responsiveness. Short-term sleep deprivation was associated with lower intended responsiveness via the above path from poorer inhibitory control to heightened self-oriented cry processing. Findings suggest that sleep, emotional and cognitive factors are associated with cry processing and subsequent responsiveness independent of one another.     

Napping alone in the snow and cuddling with mommy at night: An exploratory,qualitative study of Norwegian beliefs on infant sleep

This study addresses Norwegian infants’ sleeping places during the day and night. In the first part we asked the general public to indicate where they think infants should sleep by placing stickers on a depiction of different sleeping places. This revealed that infants were expected to predominantly sleep outside in a stroller during the day and either bedshare, room share or sleep independently from their parents at night. Interviews with Norwegian mothers confirmed these patterns and revealed that mothers emphasized the benefits of fresh air and being out in nature. They expressed valuing independence, though their opinions on how this could be achieved diverged, some proposing independent, other co-sleeping. Other outcomes of sleeping arrangements were rarely mentioned. Some, particularly mothers whose children bedshared or had different sleeping places from one night to the other or throughout the night, emphasized the infants’ right to choose how to sleep. None of the mothers endorsed letting infants cry themselves to sleep but many mentioned the importance of the child feeling secure. We argue that the seemingly contradictory sleeping patterns is in line with cultural values for independence, social cohesion and a love of nature.     

Precursors of social emotional functioning among full-term and preterm infants at 12 months: Early infant withdrawal behavior and symptoms of maternal depression

This study forms part of a longitudinal investigation of early infant social withdrawal, maternal symptoms of depression and later child social emotional functioning. The sample consisted of a group of full-term infants (N = 238) and their mothers, and a group of moderately premature infants (N = 64) and their mothers. At 3 months, the infants were observed with the Alarm Distress Baby Scale (ADBB) and the mothers completed the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS). At 12 months, the mothers filled out questionnaires about the infants’ social emotional functioning (Infant Toddler Social Emotional Assessment and the Ages and Stages Questionnaire-Social Emotional). At 3 months, as we have previously shown, the premature infants had exhibited more withdrawal behavior and their mothers reported elevated maternal depressive symptoms as compared with the full-born group. At 12 months the mothers of the premature infants reported more child internalizing behavior. These data suggest that infant withdrawal behavior as well as maternal depressive mood may serve as sensitive indices of early risk status. Further, the results suggest that early maternal depressive symptoms are a salient predictor of later child social emotional functioning. However, neither early infant withdrawal behavior, nor gestational age, did significantly predict social emotional outcome at 12 months. It should be noted that the differences in strength of the relations between ADBB and EPDS, respectively, to the outcome at 12 months was modest. An implication of the study is that clinicians should be aware of the complex interplay between early infant withdrawal and signs of maternal postpartum depression in planning ports of entry for early intervention.     

Maternal Depressive Symptomatology and Parenting Behavior: Exploration of Possible Mediators

Possible mediators of the relation between maternal depressive symptomatology and parenting behavior were examined for 96 children with ADHD and their mothers drawn from the Multimodal Treatment Study of Children with ADHD (MTA) as part of an add-on investigation conducted by two of the six MTA sites. General cognitions (i.e., maternal locus of control and self-esteem) and parenting-specific factors (i.e., maternal parenting efficacy and parenting stress) were examined as possible mediators. Findings provide initial support that maternal parenting stress, as well as maternal locus of control and self-esteem mediate the relation between maternal depressive symptomatology and parenting behavior. This provides support for the argument that some families of children with ADHD may benefit from an expanded version of parent management training that includes sessions directly targeting affective and cognitive factors in parents, similar to treatment programs used to treat childhood conduct problems.     

The influence of maternal anxiety and depression symptoms on fNIRS brain responses to emotional faces in 5- and 7-month-old infants

Greater relative right (versus left) frontal cortical activation to emotional faces as measured with alpha power in the electroencephalogram (EEG), has been considered a promising neural marker of increased vulnerability to psychopathology and emotional disorders. We set out to explore multichannel fNIRS as a tool to investigate infants’ frontal asymmetry responses (hypothesizing greater right versus left frontal cortex activation) to emotional faces as influenced by maternal anxiety and depression symptoms during the postnatal period. We also explored activation differences in fronto-temporal regions associated with facial emotion processing. Ninety-one typically developing 5- and 7-month-old infants were shown photographs of women portraying happy, fearful and angry expressions. Hemodynamic brain responses were analyzed over two frontopolar and seven bilateral cortical regions subdivided into frontal, temporal and parietal areas, defined by age-appropriate MRI templates. Infants of mothers reporting higher negative affect had greater oxyhemoglobin (oxyHb) activation across all emotions over the left inferior frontal gyrus, a region implicated in emotional communication. Follow-up analyses indicated that associations were driven by maternal depression, but not anxiety symptoms. Overall, we found no support for greater right versus left frontal cortex activation in association with maternal negative affect. Findings point to the potential utility of fNIRS as a method for identifying altered neural substrates associated with exposure to maternal depression in infancy.     

Role of maternal affect and regulatory strategies in toddlers’ emotion and behavior regulation

Using a moment-to-moment multilevel approach, we examined the relative effectiveness of (a) toddlers’ lagged (i.e., previous-interval) regulatory strategies and toddlers’ lagged expression of negative emotion, as moderated by maternal affect, and (b) maternal lagged regulatory strategies, on toddlers’ current-interval (1) expression of negative emotion, and, (2) ability to delay gratification during a wait task. Two-level random coefficient models, with twelve repeated-measurement occasions (10 s-intervals) of observed behaviors (N = 1571) nested within 134 mother-toddler dyads from low-income families (67 girls; M_age = 25.77 months, SD_age = 1.60) were examined. Cross-level interactions revealed that maternal positive affect buffered severity of toddlers’ expression of negative emotion between lagged and current-intervals, while maternal negative affect disrupted toddlers’ effective utilization of lagged regulatory strategies on current-interval expression of negative emotion. However, regardless of maternal affect, toddlers who displayed higher expression of negative emotion and utilized more regulatory strategies in lagged-intervals displayed greater delay of gratification in current-intervals. Also, as mothers displayed greater minimization of toddlers' emotional distress, higher physical restraint, and used fewer distractions, toddlers displayed more intense expression of negative emotion in subsequent intervals. Similarly, as mothers used higher physical restraint and fewer distractions, toddlers were less able to wait in subsequent intervals. Results illustrate the disruptive roles of maternal negative affect and unsupportive regulatory strategies on toddlers' emotion and behavior regulation. Together, these findings point to targeting maternal positive affect in combination with supportive regulatory strategies to promote toddlers’ transition from external- to internal-regulation.     

Examining the Emotional Experience of Mothers Completing an Evidence-Based Parenting Intervention: A Grounded Theory Analysis

Parenting interventions are a well-established treatment for addressing child behavior problems that have also been shown to improve parent psychosocial health. Yet, little is known about how caregiver emotional experiences change over time during treatment. In response, the purpose of this study was to explore the emotional experiences of mothers following their participation in an evidence-based parenting intervention. Researchers conducted a secondary analysis of existing qualitative data. The study sample included semi-structured interview data from 17 mothers who previously completed the GenerationPMTO parenting intervention. Data analysis followed the grounded theory approach and included a sequential process of open, axial, and selective coding using the constant comparative method. Findings indicate mothers progressed through three distinct, yet interrelated stages of emotional experience: Before PMTO, their experiences were characterized by parenting through crisis (Stage 1); during PMTO, they transitioned to crisis stabilization (Stage 2); and following PMTO, they described experiences of emerging recovery and resilience (Stage 3). Maternal emotional experiences in each stage occurred across three contextual realms: (a) the individual (intrapersonal) level, (b) the parent–child relationship level, and the broader systemic level. Results highlight the dynamic and evolving nature of maternal emotional experience throughout various stages of the intervention process and suggest how these experiences may be associated with promoting effective parenting practices and positive child outcomes.     

母亲教养方式及其相关因素同幼儿好奇心关系的研究

研究以217名幼儿园儿童及其母亲为研究对象,以《母亲教养方式问卷》和自编《3—6岁儿童好奇心教师评定问卷》为工具,探讨了母亲教养方式及其相关因素与幼儿好奇心之间的关系。结果表明,不一致的母亲教养方式对幼儿好奇心有不利影响,放任的母亲教养方式下幼儿探索持久性较差;母亲受教育程度和生育年龄对幼儿好奇心的间接效应存在,但不显著。     

Culture,carrying, and communication: Beliefs and behavior associated with babywearing

Ethnographic research suggests mother-infant physical contact predicts high levels of maternal responsiveness to infant cues, yet it is unclear whether this responsiveness is driven by the act of physical contact or by underlying beliefs about responsiveness. We examine beliefs and behavior associated with infant carrying (i.e., babywearing) among U.S. mothers and experimentally test the effect of mother-infant physical contact on maternal responsiveness. In Study 1 (N = 23 dyads), babywearing mothers were more likely to interact contingently in response to infant cues than non-babywearing mothers during an in-lab play session. In Study 2 (N = 492 mothers), babywearing predicted maternal beliefs emphasizing responsiveness to infant cues. In Study 3 (N = 20 dyads), we experimentally manipulated mother-infant physical contact in the lab using a within-subjects design and found that babywearing increased maternal tactile interaction, decreased maternal and infant object contact, and increased maternal responsiveness to infant vocalizations. Our results motivate further research examining how culturally-mediated infant carrying practices shape the infant’s early social environment and subsequent development.