Salivary α-Amylase Reactivity to Infant Crying in Maltreating Mothers

Reijman, Sophie; Alink, Lenneke R. A.; Block, Laura; Werner, Claudia D.; Maras, Athanasios; Rijnberk, Corine; IJzendoorn, Marinus H. van; Bakermans‐Kranenburg, Marian J.

doi:10.1007/s10578-014-0499-6

Cited by 13 publications

(10 citation statements)

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“…This ensured that every participant was represented just once in each meta-analysis performed in the present study. For instance, Reijman et al published two papers on autonomic (re)activity in a largely overlapping sample of maltreating mothers ( 2014 , 2015 ). The latter included one autonomic measure, namely, salivary alpha amylase, while the former included four more common ones, that is, HR, vagal tone, pre-ejection period (PEP), and SC, and was therefore selected for inclusion in the meta-analyses.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…However, findings were notably mixed, possibly because studies varied with respect to sample characteristics (e.g., ranging from maltreating parents to nonparents at risk for child maltreatment), types of standardized stressors used (e.g., ranging from recordings of infant cry sounds to nonchild-related tasks such as solving anagrams), and the autonomic measures assessed (e.g., SC, HR). Moreover, data from recent studies have failed to support the notion that maltreating/at-risk participants exhibit greater autonomic reactivity to stressors ( Crouch et al, 2015 ; Reijman et al, 2014 , 2015 ).…”

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confidence: 99%

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Baseline Functioning and Stress Reactivity in Maltreating Parents and At-Risk Adults

et al. 2016

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We reviewed and meta-analyzed 10 studies (N = 492) that examined the association between (risk for) child maltreatment perpetration and basal autonomic activity, and 10 studies (N = 471) that examined the association between (risk for) child maltreatment and autonomic stress reactivity. We hypothesized that maltreating parents/at-risk adults would show higher basal levels of heart rate (HR) and skin conductance (SC) and lower levels of HR variability (HRV) and would show greater HR and SC stress reactivity, but blunted HRV reactivity. A narrative review showed that evidence from significance testing within and across studies was mixed. The first set of meta-analyses revealed that (risk for) child maltreatment was associated with higher HR baseline activity (g = 0.24), a possible indication of allostatic load. The second set of meta-analyses yielded no differences in autonomic stress reactivity between maltreating/at-risk participants and nonmaltreating/low-risk comparison groups. Cumulative meta-analyses showed that positive effects for sympathetic stress reactivity as a risk factor for child maltreatment were found in a few early studies, whereas each subsequently aggregated study reduced the combined effect size to a null effect, an indication of the winner’s curse. Most studies were underpowered. Future directions for research are suggested.

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Section: Methodsmentioning

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Baseline Functioning and Stress Reactivity in Maltreating Parents and At-Risk Adults

et al. 2016

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“…However, as mentioned above, the most appropriate response to infant crying is still under discussion. Some studies suggest that sympathetic hypo‐arousal in response to crying is associated with the child abuse risk (Reijman et al, ). Therefore, this study can only be interpreted to show that executive function is involved in the suppression of heart rate; in future research, the relationship between heart rate response and appropriate parenting behavior should be investigated.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The influence of cognitive load on maternal postural sway and heart rate in response to infant vocalizations

Hiraoka

Nomura

2020

Developmental Psychobiology

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Infants communicate their emotions to their caregivers through cries and laughter. Recent work suggests that adaptive parenting requires cognitive regulation of intuitive behaviors toward infants’ signals. In this study, we examined the effects of cognitive regulation on mothers’ unconscious behavioral and cardiac responses to infant cries and laughs. In all, 55 mothers took part in this study. To manipulate cognitive load, mothers were asked to memorize alphabet characters (two letters in the low cognitive load condition and eight in the high cognitive load condition). Then, they heard infant vocalizations (cries or laughs) for 6 s. During this time, we measured mothers’ behavioral (center of pressure, an index of approach–avoidance behavior) and physiological (heart rate) responses. Regardless of vocalization type (infant cries or laughs), high cognitive load increased mothers’ forward movement toward the infant sounds as well as mothers’ heart rate. These findings advance our understanding of the link between executive function and maternal response to infant signals by utilizing postural and physiological measures of maternal response during memory tasks that require cognitive resources.

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“…Reijman and her colleagues reported significantly lower levels of alpha-amylase, a marker of autonomic nervous system activity, in a clinical sample that included both abusive and neglectful mothers [35], a pattern that has held up across several studies [36]. Childhood poverty, too, has been linked to distinctive responses to infant crying.…”

Section: Adult Responses To Infant Cryingmentioning

confidence: 99%

Parenting the crying infant

Zeifman

James‐Roberts

2017

Current Opinion in Psychology

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Crying conveys evidence about an infant’s state and neurological health which, when carefully assessed, can provide diagnostic information for parents and clinicians. When crying is inconsolable or judged to be excessive, it can stress parents, disrupt parenting and, in rare cases, place an infant at risk for abuse. Research has revealed physiological and neural responses to crying that may predispose some adults to maltreat infants. Although this work suggests that parental vulnerabilities contribute to insensitive or aggressive reactions, there is a growing recognition that exposure to large doses of crying may be a challenge for all adults. Support programmes that inform parents about infant crying, enhance parenting, and improve parental wellbeing and coping, are under development with promising initial findings.

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Salivary α-Amylase Reactivity to Infant Crying in Maltreating Mothers

Cited by 13 publications

References 58 publications

Baseline Functioning and Stress Reactivity in Maltreating Parents and At-Risk Adults

Baseline Functioning and Stress Reactivity in Maltreating Parents and At-Risk Adults

The influence of cognitive load on maternal postural sway and heart rate in response to infant vocalizations

Parenting the crying infant

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