BACKGROUND: Long-standing theory suggests that quality of the mother's (or primary caregiver's) interaction with a child is a key determinant of the child's subsequent resilience or vulnerability and has implications for health in adulthood. However, there is a dearth of longitudinal data with both objective assessments of nurturing behaviour during infancy and sustained follow-up ascertaining the quality of adult functioning. METHODS: We used data from the Providence, Rhode Island birth cohort of the National Collaborative Perinatal Project (mean age 34 at follow-up, final N=482) to conduct a prospective study of the association between objectively measured affective quality of the mother-infant interaction and adult mental health. Infant-mother interaction quality was rated by an observer when infants were 8 months old, and adult emotional functioning was assessed from the Symptom Checklist-90, capturing both specific and general types of distress. RESULTS: High levels of maternal affection at 8 months were associated with significantly lower levels of distress in adult offspring (1/2 standard deviation; b=-4.76, se=1.7, p<0.01). The strongest association was with the anxiety subscale. Mother's affection did not seem to be on the pathway between lower parental SES and offspring distress. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that early nurturing and warmth have long-lasting positive effects on mental health well into adulthood.
BACKGROUND: Long-standing theory suggests that quality of the mother's (or primary caregiver's) interaction with a child is a key determinant of the child's subsequent resilience or vulnerability and has implications for health in adulthood. However, there is a dearth of longitudinal data with both objective assessments of nurturing behaviour during infancy and sustained follow-up ascertaining the quality of adult functioning. METHODS: We used data from the Providence, Rhode Island birth cohort of the National Collaborative Perinatal Project (mean age 34 at follow-up, final N=482) to conduct a prospective study of the association between objectively measured affective quality of the mother-infant interaction and adult mental health. Infant-mother interaction quality was rated by an observer when infants were 8 months old, and adult emotional functioning was assessed from the Symptom Checklist-90, capturing both specific and general types of distress. RESULTS: High levels of maternal affection at 8&emsp14;months were associated with significantly lower levels of distress in adult offspring (1/2 standard deviation; b=-4.76, se=1.7, p<0.01). The strongest association was with the anxiety subscale. Mother's affection did not seem to be on the pathway between lower parental SES and offspring distress. CONCLUSION: These findings suggest that early nurturing and warmth have long-lasting positive effects on mental health well into adulthood.
Authors: Paul J Lucassen; Charlotte A Oomen; Eva F G Naninck; Carlos P Fitzsimons; Anne-Marie van Dam; Boldizsár Czeh; Aniko Korosi Journal: Cold Spring Harb Perspect Biol Date: 2015-09-01 Impact factor: 10.005
Authors: Rosa Vilaseca; Magda Rivero; Rosa M Bersabé; María-José Cantero; Esperanza Navarro-Pardo; Clara Valls-Vidal; Fina Ferrer Journal: Front Psychol Date: 2019-04-24