Infant carrying as a tool to promote secure attachments in young mothers: Comparing intervention and control infants during the still-face paradigm

Infants of adolescent mothers have a greater risk of developing insecure attachment types and attachment disorders into adulthood. Previous research suggests that skin-to-skin contact predicts secure attachment; however, it is largely unknown whether infant carrying or “babywearing” has similar benefits. We hypothesized that adolescent mothers (Mage=19.1 years, SD = 2.0; 40.6 % Hispanic; 40 %< = 11th grade) who were randomly assigned to an infant carrying condition at 2–4 weeks’ post-partum (n = 16; 1 h daily for 3 months), compared to a control group (n = 17; reading), would be more likely to have securely attached infants at 7 months (M = 29.0 weeks, SD = 3.4). We coded infant gaze orientation, fretfulness, affect, self-soothing behaviors, and vocalizations in the reunion phase of the Still-Face Paradigm, and used an algorithm derived from the infant Global Rating Scales to determine attachment type. Infants in the intervention condition were more likely to have secure attachments and less likely to have disorganized attachments compared to the control condition. Hours spent babywearing was positively correlated with secure attachment, r_pb = .40, and negatively correlated with disorganized attachment, r_pb =−0.36. There were no statistically significant differences between the conditions or babywearing hours for avoidant or resistant attachment types. The results suggest that infant carrying may be an effective tool at promoting secure attachments, particularly for mothers and infants at greater risk for attachment insecurity.     

The vocal repertoire of preterm infants: Characteristics and possible applications

We investigated infants’ capacities to express themselves orally at very early developmental stages. Most reports focus on crying when in pain or hungry. We evaluated young preterm infants’ spontaneous vocal production in non-painful contexts. We identified a vocal repertoire composed of nine types of vocalisations. High-pitched sounds were associated with relaxed postures, implying a positive valence, whereas long low-pitched vocalisations, associated more with grimaces and muscle tensions, appeared to have a more negative valence. Infants’ vocalisations were useful indicators of their internal state in two situations (when exposed to clothing constraints and environmental noises).