Prenatal exposure to disaster-related traumatic stress and developmental trajectories of temperament in early childhood: Superstorm Sandy pregnancy study.

BACKGROUND

Little is known about the impact of prenatal maternal stress (PNMS) on the developmental trajectory of temperament and few studies have been able to incorporate a natural disaster as a quasi-experimental stressor. The current study investigated PNMS related to Superstorm Sandy ('Sandy'), a hurricane that struck the New York metropolitan area in October 2012, in terms of objective exposure during pregnancy, subjective stress reaction as assessed by maternal symptoms of post-traumatic stress, and their impact on the developmental changes in temperament during early childhood.

METHOD

A subsample of 318 mother-child dyads was drawn from the Stress in Pregnancy Study. Temperament was measured at 6, 12, 18, and 24 months of age.

RESULTS

Objective exposure was associated with greater High-Intensity Pleasure, Approach, Perceptual Sensitivity and Fearfulness, but lower Cuddliness and Duration of Orientation at 6 months. Objective exposure and its interaction with subjective stress reaction predicted developmental changes in temperament. In particular, objective exposure was linked to greater increases in Activity Level but decreases in High-Intensity Pleasure, Approach, and Fearfulness. The combination of objective exposure and subjective stress reaction was also associated with greater increases in Activity Level.

LIMITATIONS

Temperament was measured solely via maternal report. Trimester-specific effects of Sandy on temperament were not examined.

CONCLUSION

This is the first study to examine the effects of prenatal maternal exposure to a natural disaster on trajectories of early childhood temperament. Findings suggest that both objective stress exposure and subjective stress reaction in-utero predict developmental trajectories of temperament in early childhood.