How do parents perceive and utilize knowledge of their infant’s mental health? A systematic review

Abstract

Infant mental health (IMH) is a growing area of practice for health, education and social care practitioners, as links are increasingly made between experiences in the early years and subsequent child development, mental health and well-being. It is unclear how parents perceive IMH and use knowledge relating to IMH with their children. We conducted a systematic review, the aim of which was to determine parents' perceptions of IMH and how they utilize this knowledge with their infants. We undertook a search of relevant databases and journals and from an initial list of 4147 potential papers, identified 16 for the review. Original data were extracted and presented in a table, and the content of all papers was analysed thematically and presented in narrative form. Three main themes emerged from the available research: knowledge and understanding of child development, influences of society and culture, and interpretation of emotions and expressions. Our results indicate that research is limited in terms of parental perspectives of IMH and how they obtain and use this knowledge. Further research is needed to investigate this topic to maximize mental well-being in infancy and later life.

Scientific Publication Patterns of Systematic Reviews on Psychosocial Interventions Improving Well-being: Bibliometric Analysis

“…PIs that help increase self-awareness and self-efficacy are effective in managing eating disorders and improve an individuals’ well-being overall [ 24 , 26 , 47 ]. PIs for parents were evaluated as effective for adopted children [ 32 ], parents of infants [ 34 ], and mothers with maternal depressive symptoms [ 35 ], resulting in an improvement of well-being among children, parents, and whole families [ 31 ].…”

“…Further research is required to provide recommendations about the effectiveness of interventions with adoptive parents [ 32 ] and parents of infants to improve their mental well-being in later life [ 34 ].…”

“…More research on intervention type, intensity, duration, and follow-up measurement [28] is required for a more precise evaluation of the effectiveness of PI for patients with cancer [20] and those with dementia [15]. Further research is required to provide recommendations about the effectiveness of interventions with adoptive parents [32] and parents of infants to improve their mental well-being in later life [34].…”

“…The idea of using PIs with adoptive parents [ 32 ] and evidence-based parenting interventions [ 33 ] are effective for enhancing children’s well-being. Peters et al [ 34 ] suggested that the areas related to the parents’ perception of infants’ mental health are important. It has been shown that parental interventions decrease maternal depressive symptoms [ 35 ] and can be positively associated with educational, health, and well-being effects as well as economic benefits [ 36 ].…”