Affect contagion between mothers and infants: Examining valence and touch.

Abstract

Mothers and their babies represent one of the closest dyadic units and thus provide a powerful paradigm to examine how affective states are shared, and result in, synchronized physiologic responses between two people. We recruited mothers and their 12- to 14-month-old infants (Ndyads = 98) to complete a lab study in which mothers were initially separated from their infants and assigned to either a low-arousal positive/relaxation condition, intended to elicit parasympathetic nervous system (PNS) reactivity, or a high-arousal negative/stress task, intended to elicit sympathetic nervous system (SNS) reactivity. Upon reunion, infants were placed either on their mothers’ laps (touch condition) or in a high chair next to the mother (no-touch condition). We then examined if the babies SNS and/or PNS responses changed from their baseline levels and how the dyads’ physiological responses – both PNS and SNS responses – synchronized over time as a function of mothers’ affect manipulation and touch condition. Three noteworthy findings were observed. Firstly, infants of mothers assigned to the relaxation task showed greater PNS increases and PNS covariation. Secondly, infants of mothers assigned to the stress task showed stronger SNS covariation with their mothers over time. Finally, infants who sat on their mothers’ laps (i.e., touch condition) showed stronger SNS covariation than those in the no-touch condition. Taken together, these results suggest that mothers’ affective states – low-arousal positive states as well as high-arousal negative states – can be “caught” by their infants, and that touch can play a critical role in stress contagion.

Effects of rejection intensity and rejection sensitivity on social approach behavior in women

“…Characteristics of the social interaction task might, therefore, affect its ability to induce social withdrawal. Physical contact is one of the most powerful sensory experiences [59]. Physical touch between family members or strangers has been shown to transmit discrete emotions [60][61][62] and to promote stress contagion [59].…”

“…Physical contact is one of the most powerful sensory experiences [59]. Physical touch between family members or strangers has been shown to transmit discrete emotions [60][61][62] and to promote stress contagion [59]. While participants in the medium intensity rejection condition were willing to communicate with their partners by seeking social closeness, included participants, who did not differ in their affiliative behavior from severely rejected participants, kept more to themselves.…”

Marital Conflict Predicts Mother‐to‐Infant Adrenocortical Transmission

“…These findings illuminate the dynamic relationship between parents and infants, highlighting changes in mothers’ sensitive and responsive emotional and behavioral states as downregulators of infants’ own physiological states. It is possible that, in the same vein, a mother's harsh and rough touch may transmit heightened physiological reactivity to the child (Waters, West, Karnilowicz, & Mendes, ). Interestingly, it appears that the pathways by which conflict and intrusion predict transmission are independent.…”

Momentary affect, stress coping, and food intake in mother–child dyads.

“…In addition, mothers who are stressed may take a break from watching their children which could allow children to eat pastries/sweets without their mother's permission (Friedman & Billick, 2015). There also may be symbiotic associations between mothers' and their child's affect and stress where one dyad member's affect or stress causes changes in the other dyad member's affect or AFFECT AND DIET IN MOTHER-CHILD DYADS 6 stress, which then is related to food intake (Waters, West, Karnilowicz, & Mendes, 2017).…”