Early patterns of maternal attachment

Fuller, Judith R

doi:10.1080/07399339009515913

Cited by 49 publications

(31 citation statements)

References 18 publications

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“…For other women, there may be a more consistent pattern in maternal relationship with her child from the antenatal period to postpartum. Several previous studies have indeed found evidence for a relationship between antenatal MFA and postnatal attachment; however, methods used and study findings have been inconsistent (Siddiqui and Hagglof 2000; Muller 1996; Bloom 1995; Fuller 1990), highlighting again the need for more definitive studies. Moreover, none of these studies examined pre- and postnatal attachment in the context of MDD.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…Particular thoughts, feelings, and behaviors toward the fetus are common among pregnant women, though there is a wide degree of variability in the extent to which they are experienced (Leifer 1977; Cranley 1981). There is evidence for MFA to increase over the course of pregnancy (Grace 1989), and that attachment to the fetus in the antenatal period may lay the groundwork for the mother-to-infant relationship in the postpartum period (Siddiqui and Hagglof 2000; Muller 1993; Fuller 1990). It is well known that the early mother–infant relationship can influence future social, emotional, and cognitive development in the child (Ainsworth 1979; Ranson and Urichuk 2008).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Major depressive disorder during pregnancy and emotional attachment to the fetus

McFarland

Salisbury

Battle

et al. 2011

Arch Womens Ment Health

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While there is good evidence that depression negatively impacts mother-to-infant emotional attachment in the postpartum period, the impact of depression in pregnancy on maternal emotions and cognitions about the fetus (often termed “maternal–fetal attachment” or MFA) is unclear. This study compared MFA scores from women meeting clinical criteria for Major Depressive Disorder (MDD) with scores from nondepressed women. Participants were 161 women enrolled at 23–36 weeks gestation, of whom 65 met criteria for MDD via the Structured Clinical Interview for the DSM-IV-TR during their second and/or third trimesters. Cranley’s Maternal Fetal Attachment Scale was administered at 26 and 36 weeks gestation. Generalized linear modeling was used to assess the effect of MDD, anxiety, and antidepressant use on MFA. MDD was negatively related to MFA (LR)=4.58, df=1, p<0.04). Neither anxiety (LR=0.22, p<0.64), nor antidepressant use (LR=0.20, df=1, p<0.66) were related to MFA. Depression severity was negatively related to MFAS scores (B=−0.005, SE=.002, p<0.0012) when including the interaction of MDD group and HRSD scores in the model. This study is the first to demonstrate that clinically defined MDD during pregnancy negatively impacts MFA, suggesting that the basis for poor mother-to-infant attachment in postpartum MDD may have roots in pregnancy.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Major depressive disorder during pregnancy and emotional attachment to the fetus

McFarland

Salisbury

Battle

et al. 2011

Arch Womens Ment Health

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

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“…To collect data about these aspects is the main interest of the present study. Existing empirical evidences show that maternal attachment during pregnancy (for example, Fuller, 1990;Kemp et al, 1990) or immediately after delivery (for example, Cernadas et al, 2003) is associated with the quality of the mother-to-infant interaction and care (namely breastfeeding), which interfere in the child development (for example, Wiberg et al, 1989). Few are the studies that focus on the parent's emotional involvement with the newborn, and almost all are about mothers, so practically no information exists about fathers (Robson & Mandel, 1985).…”

Section: Parent-infant Initial Emotional Involvement 523mentioning

confidence: 99%

Mother‐to‐infant and father‐to‐infant initial emotional involvement

Figueiredo

Costa

Pacheco

et al. 2007

Early Child Development and Care

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While infant attachment has been largely studied, parental attachment is still relatively unknown, especially when referred to fathers. However, it is mainly recognised that parents' emotional involvement with the newborn contributes to the quality of the interaction and the care they provide. The aim of this study was to study mother-to-infant and father-to-infant initial emotional involvement; namely, differences between mothers and fathers and changes in mother's emotions toward the neonate within the first days after delivery. The Bonding Scale, an extended Portuguese version of the 'New Mother-to-Infant Bonding Scale', was administered during the first two days after childbirth to a sample of 315 mothers and 141 fathers (n = 456), at the Júlio Dinis Maternity Hospital (Portugal). Most mothers and fathers show positive emotions and only a few of them showed negative emotions toward the infant. Maternal and paternal emotional involvement toward the newborn tend to be similar; nevertheless, fathers show less fear and better emotional involvement with the neonate, while mothers are sadder and show more emotions not related to bonding. During the first days following delivery, emotions not related to bonding, such as fear, seem to decrease in mothers.

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“…Previous studies have shown a significant association between maternal prenatal attachment and postnatal mother-baby interactions (e.g. J.R. Fuller, 1990;Siddiqui & Hägglöf, 2000) and family functioning (S. Fuller, Moore, & Lester, 1993). Investigating the emotional tie to the foetus and then to the baby is thus essential to understanding the transition to parenthood both for families who conceived spontaneously and those who conceived through IVF.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Family interactions in IVF families: change over the transition to parenthood

Cairo

Darwiche

Tissot

et al. 2012

Journal of Reproductive and Infant Psychology

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Objective: This article presents a study of the change over time in the family interactions of couples who conceived through in-vitro fertilisation (IVF). Background: Observational methods are rarely used to study family interactions in families who used assisted reproductive techniques, but these methods are crucial for taking account of the communication that occurs in interactions with infants. Methods: Thirty-one couples expecting their first child were seen during the fifth month of pregnancy and when the child was nine months old. Family interactions were recorded in pre-and postnatal versions of the Lausanne Trilogue Play situation. Measures of marital satisfaction and parent-to-foetus/baby attachment or 'bonding' were also used to assess family relational dynamics. Results: Results showed that family alliance, marital satisfaction and parental attachment scores in the IVF sample were all similar to or higher than those in the reference sample during pregnancy. However, at nine months postnatally, the family alliance scores were lower. While marital satisfaction decreased over the period and parent-baby attachment increased, the family alliance scores were unstable, as no association was observed between the pre-and postnatal scores. In addition, neither prenatal marital satisfaction nor parent-foetus attachment predicted the postnatal family alliance. Conclusion: The change in the family alliance over the transition to parenthood appears to be specific to our IVF sample. Given that postnatal family functioning could not be predicted by prenatal family functioning, our observational data underline the importance of offering postnatal support to these families.

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Early patterns of maternal attachment

Cited by 49 publications

References 18 publications

Major depressive disorder during pregnancy and emotional attachment to the fetus

Major depressive disorder during pregnancy and emotional attachment to the fetus

Mother‐to‐infant and father‐to‐infant initial emotional involvement

Family interactions in IVF families: change over the transition to parenthood

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