BACKGROUND: Developmental programming by maternal stress during pregnancy is found to influence behavioural development in the offspring. AIM: To prospectively investigate the association between antenatal maternal anxiety and children's behaviour rated by their mothers and teachers. METHODS: In a large, community based birth-cohort (the ABCD-study) antenatal maternal state-anxiety (M = 36.7, SD = 9.8) was measured around the 16th week of gestation. Five years later, 3,446 mothers and 3,520 teachers evaluated 3,758 children's overall problem behaviour, emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention problems, peer relationship problems and pro-social behaviour. RESULTS: Hierarchical multiple regression analysis using a large number of potential covariates revealed that children of mothers who reported higher levels of anxiety during their pregnancy showed more overall problem behaviour, hyperactivity/inattention problems, emotional symptoms, peer relationship problems, conduct problems and showed less pro-social behaviour when mothers rated their child's behaviour. When teachers rated child behaviour, children showed more overall problem behaviour and less pro-social behaviour that was related to antenatal anxiety. The child's sex moderated the association between antenatal anxiety with overall problem behaviour and hyperactivity/inattention problems when reported by the mother. In boys, exposure to antenatal anxiety was associated with a stronger increase in overall problem behaviour compared to girls. Furthermore, antenatal anxiety was significantly related to an increase in hyperactivity/inattention problems in boys, while this was not the case in girls. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to antenatal maternal anxiety is associated with children's problem behaviour, with different outcome patterns for both sexes. Nevertheless, effect sizes in this study were small.
BACKGROUND: Developmental programming by maternal stress during pregnancy is found to influence behavioural development in the offspring. AIM: To prospectively investigate the association between antenatal maternal anxiety and children's behaviour rated by their mothers and teachers. METHODS: In a large, community based birth-cohort (the ABCD-study) antenatal maternal state-anxiety (M = 36.7, SD = 9.8) was measured around the 16th week of gestation. Five years later, 3,446 mothers and 3,520 teachers evaluated 3,758 children's overall problem behaviour, emotional symptoms, conduct problems, hyperactivity/inattention problems, peer relationship problems and pro-social behaviour. RESULTS: Hierarchical multiple regression analysis using a large number of potential covariates revealed that children of mothers who reported higher levels of anxiety during their pregnancy showed more overall problem behaviour, hyperactivity/inattention problems, emotional symptoms, peer relationship problems, conduct problems and showed less pro-social behaviour when mothers rated their child's behaviour. When teachers rated child behaviour, children showed more overall problem behaviour and less pro-social behaviour that was related to antenatal anxiety. The child's sex moderated the association between antenatal anxiety with overall problem behaviour and hyperactivity/inattention problems when reported by the mother. In boys, exposure to antenatal anxiety was associated with a stronger increase in overall problem behaviour compared to girls. Furthermore, antenatal anxiety was significantly related to an increase in hyperactivity/inattention problems in boys, while this was not the case in girls. CONCLUSIONS: Exposure to antenatal maternal anxiety is associated with children's problem behaviour, with different outcome patterns for both sexes. Nevertheless, effect sizes in this study were small.
Authors: Shannon K Murphy; Anna M Fineberg; Seth D Maxwell; Lauren B Alloy; Lauren Zimmermann; Nickilou Y Krigbaum; Barbara A Cohn; Deborah A G Drabick; Lauren M Ellman Journal: Psychiatry Res Date: 2017-07-14 Impact factor: 3.222
Authors: Mannan Luo; Irene Pappa; Charlotte A M Cecil; Philip Jansen; Marinus H van IJzendoorn; Rianne Kok Journal: Child Psychiatry Hum Dev Date: 2021-03-20