Maternal Intimate Partner Violence Exposure and Autonomic Reactivity: Associations With Positive Parenting

Abstract

Intimate partner violence (IPV) can negatively impact parenting, posing a threat both to the wellbeing of mothers and their young children. Parenting may also be influenced by emotion regulation (ER), which can support parents’ ability to navigate relational challenges or buffer against the influence of adverse experiences on parenting. Changes in maternal respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) during parent–child interactions have been conceptualized as a psychophysiological index of ER. Competing theoretical models posit that RSA response may mediate or moderate the relation between IPV and parenting or may be independently associated with parenting, however, there is little prior evidence concerning these hypothesized associations. This study examined these associations in a sample of 125 low-income maltreating and comparison mothers and their 3- to 5-year-old children. Dyads completed a moderately challenging laboratory task, and positive parenting and maternal RSA were measured during the task. Maternal verbal IPV exposure, but not physical IPV, was associated with less positive parenting, while greater maternal RSA activation over the task was associated with more positive parenting. Maternal RSA activation did not mediate or moderate the relationship between IPV exposure and parenting, and this association did not differ by whether or not the mother had perpetrated child maltreatment. Consequently, verbal IPV exposure and greater RSA activation independently predicted positive parenting. Results suggest that interventions for IPV-exposed mothers of young children may benefit from ensuring psychological safety and improving maternal ER to promote positive parenting for at-risk children.

Dynamic fluctuations in maternal cardiac vagal tone moderate moment-to-moment associations between children’s negative behavior and maternal emotional support.

“…Thus, in moments when preschool-aged children show minor increases in frustration or disappointment, maintaining stability in one’s RSA or vagal augmentation may help mothers respond with greater emotional support. This interpretation is consistent with studies showing that maternal vagal augmentation is associated with more supportive caregiving behaviors during moderate interactive challenges with toddler- and preschool-aged children (Giuliano et al, 2015; Lorber & O’leary, 2005; Lorber et al, 2016; Molina et al, 2020; but see Skowron et al, 2013, for an exception). Notably, by examining within-person associations between these constructs, we extend prior research that has predominantly examined individual differences in maternal parasympathetic physiology.…”

“…Evidence also suggests that vagal augmentation is associated with greater parental support (or less nonsupport) during parent–child interactions. For instance, mothers who displayed vagal augmentation relative to baseline during moderately challenging tasks with their toddler- and preschool-aged children were rated higher on warm, positive parenting behaviors and coordination with their children, and lower on harsh discipline practices during the interaction (Giuliano et al, 2015; Lorber et al, 2016; Lorber & O’leary, 2005; Molina et al, 2020). Other work has illustrated that mothers tend to show vagal augmentation while watching positively or negatively evocative film clips with their children, yet less so when watching similar clips alone.…”

“…Given mixed findings on whether vagal augmentation or withdrawal is associated with more supportive parenting during challenging situations (e.g., Hill-Soderlund et al, 2008; Molina et al, 2020), we had competing hypotheses for child defeat. On the one hand, vagal augmentation in moments when children display increases in defeat may indicate mothers’ ability to become engaged, focus on the affective and social demands of the situation, and respond in an emotionally supportive manner.…”

Emotion dysregulation and reward responsiveness as predictors of autonomic reactivity to an infant cry task among substance‐using pregnant and postpartum women

“…ANS reactivity may be particularly relevant to understanding parenting behaviors in the moment, in that excessive or blunted reactivity may be barriers to responding effectively to infant cues. Indeed, recent work has linked RSA activity during parenting tasks to parenting quality and behaviors among low-income mothers of preschool-aged children (Molina et al, 2022;Skowron et al, 2013). In one study of pregnant women, Lin et al (2019) found that emotion dysregulation corresponded to blunted RSA reactivity to an infant cry task in a sample of pregnant women (26-40 weeks gestation).…”