Developmental Psychobiology Lab, IRCCS Mondino Foundation, Pavia, Italy.
Department of Brain and Behavioral Sciences, University of Pavia, Pavia, Italy.
Infant Behav Dev. 2023 May;71:101826. doi: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2023.101826. Epub 2023 Feb 28.
Maternal bonding is key for infant development and well-being. Research to date focused on prenatal bonding experience, with fewer studies looking at the postnatal period. Moreover, evidence suggests significant associations among maternal bonding, maternal mental health, and infant temperament. The joint impact of maternal mental health and infant temperament on maternal postnatal bonding remains unclear, with limited research reporting longitudinal data. Hence, the present study aims (1) to explore the impact of maternal mental health and infant temperament on postnatal bonding at both 3 and 6 months of age, (2) to explore postnatal bonding stability from 3 to 6 months, and (3) to determine which factors are linked with 3-to-6-month changes in bonding. At the infants' 3 months (n = 261) and 6 months of age (n = 217), mothers provided measures of bonding, depressive and anxious symptoms, and infant temperament via validated questionnaires. At 3 months, higher levels of maternal bonding were predicted by lower levels of anxiety and depression in the mothers and by higher infants' regulation scores. At 6 months, lower levels of anxiety and depression predicted higher levels of bonding. Moreover, mothers showing decreases in bonding were characterized by 3-to-6-month increases in depression and anxiety, as well as increased reported difficulties in regulation dimensions of infant temperament. This study highlights the impact of both maternal mental health and infant temperament on maternal postnatal bonding in a longitudinal sample and could offer useful information for early childhood prevention and care.
母婴联结对婴儿的发展和健康至关重要。迄今为止，研究主要集中在产前母婴联结体验上，而对产后阶段的研究较少。此外，有证据表明母婴联结、产妇心理健康和婴儿气质之间存在显著关联。产妇心理健康和婴儿气质对产后母婴联结的综合影响尚不清楚，只有有限的研究报告了纵向数据。因此，本研究旨在：(1) 探讨产妇心理健康和婴儿气质对产后 3 个月和 6 个月时母婴联结的影响；(2) 探讨产后 3 至 6 个月母婴联结的稳定性；(3) 确定哪些因素与 3 至 6 个月期间母婴联结的变化有关。在婴儿 3 个月（n=261）和 6 个月（n=217）大时，母亲通过验证过的问卷提供了母婴联结、抑郁和焦虑症状以及婴儿气质的测量结果。在 3 个月时，母亲的焦虑和抑郁水平较低，婴儿的调节能力得分较高，母婴联结水平较高。在 6 个月时，母亲的焦虑和抑郁水平较低，母婴联结水平较高。此外，母婴联结下降的母亲表现出 3 至 6 个月期间抑郁和焦虑增加，以及婴儿气质调节维度报告的困难增加。本研究在纵向样本中强调了产妇心理健康和婴儿气质对产后母婴联结的影响，为幼儿期的预防和护理提供了有用的信息。
