Continuity in Early Caregiving Experiences and the Transition to Parenthood: Role of Emotion Regulation and Coregulation as Family-Level Processes

Emotion regulation during pregnancy: a call to action for increased research, screening, and intervention

“…In terms of parent–child relational effects, ER during pregnancy may be relevant to prenatal attachment, which has been shown to predict postnatal attachment and caregiving quality (Paley and Hajal 2021 ). When considering ER and the parent-infant relationship, it is important to note that parents’ ER postpartum is influenced by the infant and the experience of caregiving (Rutherford et al 2015 ), suggesting bidirectional parent-infant effects.…”

“…When considering ER and the parent-infant relationship, it is important to note that parents’ ER postpartum is influenced by the infant and the experience of caregiving (Rutherford et al 2015 ), suggesting bidirectional parent-infant effects. More research is needed to elucidate these bidirectional effects postpartum; nevertheless, prenatal interventions may be especially beneficial so that parents can strengthen ER skills before infant effects are introduced (Paley and Hajal 2021 ).…”

“…Pregnancy represents a critical window when improving ER may have the potential to impact multiple parent, infant, and caregiving outcomes. Furthermore, pregnancy itself represents a unique opportunity for intervention when pregnant people are making regular healthcare visits, and before the additional stress of having a newborn is present (Paley and Hajal 2021 ). Indeed, ER is already a therapeutic target in several interventions delivered during pregnancy, for specific populations of pregnant individuals, including those who smoke, use substances, overeat, have sleep problems, or are in mental health treatment (see Bradizza et al 2017 ; Wilson and Donachie 2018 ).…”

“…Such interventions should include psychoeducation on the importance of ER for caregiving and teach and practice ER skills generally and in caregiving-specific scenarios. Prenatal interventions to promote ER may also benefit from involvement of partners or secondary caregivers to address individual and co-regulation, including discussion of how expectant parents’ own attachment relationships may have shaped their emotional functioning (Paley and Hajal 2021 ). Complementing interventions, it may be fruitful to screen for ER problems among expectant parents, as a means of assessing for potential mental health and caregiving risks, though the utility of this approach remains to be tested.…”