Parent-infant psychotherapy for improving parental and infant mental health

Abstract

The objectives are as follows: 1. To assess the effectiveness of parent-infant psychotherapy in improving parental and infant mental health and the parent-infant relationship. 2. To identify the programme components that appear to be associated with more effective outcomes and factors that modify intervention effectiveness (for example, programme duration, programme focus).

Review: Attachment and attachment‐related outcomes in preschool children – a review of recent evidence

“…A systematic review of the effectiveness of parent–infant/toddler psychotherapy (PIP) included eight RCTs comparing the effectiveness of PIP with a no‐treatment control group (four studies) or comparing PIP with other kinds of treatment (including an infant‐led model of parent–infant psychotherapy, counselling/CBT and interaction guidance) (Barlow, Bennett, Midgley, Larkin, & Wei, ). Parent–infant/child psychotherapy involves a therapist working with the parent and infant/toddler together, establishing a therapeutic alliance with the parent in order to identify unconscious patterns of relating in terms of the parent's own experiences of being parented and their internal working models.…”

“…Parent–infant/child psychotherapy involves a therapist working with the parent and infant/toddler together, establishing a therapeutic alliance with the parent in order to identify unconscious patterns of relating in terms of the parent's own experiences of being parented and their internal working models. The aim of the therapy is to help the parent to recognise the way in which their current interactions are shaped by past experiences in order to enable them to respond more freely and sensitively to their infant (Barlow et al., ). The included studies targeted parents experiencing a range of problems, such as those who have maltreated their children and parents in prison.…”

Integrating Trauma‐Informed Care Into Maternity Care Practice: Conceptual and Practical Issues

“…As of this writing, trauma‐informed universal perinatal programs (eg, Minding the Baby, Compassionate Minds) and trauma‐specific interventions that articulate with routine prenatal care and home visiting programs and address pregnancy and parenting issues (eg, the Survivor Moms’ Companion, Seeking Safety) are being developed and tested. Some treatments that are trauma informed are also being applied with childbearing women (eg, Eye Movement Desensitization Reprocessing, Infant Psychotherapy, Parents under Pressure). See Table for more information about these interprofessional approaches.…”

PROTOCOL: Parenting interventions to support parent/child attachment and psychosocial adjustment in foster and adoptive parents and children: A systematic review

“…In a meta‐analysis on the effectiveness of preventative attachment interventions on parental sensitivity and infant attachment for at risk populations ( k = 70), results suggest that interventions are rather effective at increasing parental sensitivity ( d = 0.20) and/or infant attachment ( d = 0.30; Bakermans‐Kranenburg, Van IJzendoorn, & Juffer, ). In a systematic review co‐registered at Cohrane and Campbell, Barlow, Bennett, Midgley, Larkin, and Wei () explored the efficacy of attachment‐based parent–infant psychotherapy on parental and infant mental health. This review focused on infants aged 0–24 months within vulnerable families (defined as families in which parents were suffering from mental health issues, drug/alcohol abuse, or were victims of domestic violence).…”

“…First, the population of adoptive and foster parents are typically resourceful individuals highly motivated for participation in interventions. Second, Barlow, Bennett, Midgley, Larkin, and Wei () focused only on therapeutic interventions that could be described as parent–child psychotherapy and only included infants under the age of 2 years. Juffer, Bakermans‐Kranenburg, and van IJzendoorn () provides a review and meta‐analysis of the effectiveness of Video‐feedback Intervention to promote Positive Parenting and Sensitive Discipline (VIPP‐SD), which is an intervention based partially on attachment theory with various populations of at‐risk parents and vulnerable children ( k = 12).…”