Maternal mentalization and child emotion regulation: A comparison of different phases of early childhood

Álvarez, Naiara; Lázaro, Marta Herrero; Gordo, Leire; Elejalde, Leire Iriarte; Martínez‐Pampliega, Ana

doi:10.1016/j.infbeh.2021.101681

Cited by 17 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 29 publications

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“…Thus, the homogeneity of the early age of the infant of our sample, an aspect in which our study differs from the majority of previous research, could be related to the finding of a strong relationship between a mother’s perception that her thoughts about the child’s mental states are accurate (CMS) and her perceived emotional bond toward the fetus. This would be in line with considerations on a possible change in the main caregiver’s reflective capacity during the different stages of early childhood [ 66 , 67 ]. However, at the moment, this is only a speculation based on the theoretical literature and these findings are yet to be fully understood.…”

Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 52%

Does Parental Reflective Functioning Mediate the Associations between the Maternal Antenatal and Postnatal Bond with the Child in a Community Sample?

Pazzagli

Buratta

Cenci

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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Although establishing an affective tie with a child during perinatality is considered one of the most important maternal tasks, little is still known about the mediators of the association between maternal antenatal and postnatal bonding with the infant. This prospective study addresses this gap by evaluating a community sample of 110 Italian women to assess whether maternal pre- and postnatal bonds with the infant are mediated by parental reflective functioning (PRF), as assessed at the third trimester of pregnancy and three months postpartum. Controlling for confounding variables, the hierarchical regression analyses show the maternal prenatal quality of attachment to the fetus as the main predictor of maternal postnatal attachment to the child (β = 0.315; t = 0.2.86; p = 0.005). The mediation analyses show that mothers’ PRF (b = 0.245; SE = 0.119; 95% CI = 0.071, 0.531) explains 39% of the relationship between maternal pre- and postnatal bonding with the child. The findings of this study contribute to research on the association between prenatal and mother-to-infant bonding by additionally investigating the importance of taking into account maternal PRF as a mediating variable. This provides support for the clinical utility of interventions focused on maternal PRF.

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Section: Discussionsupporting

confidence: 52%

Does Parental Reflective Functioning Mediate the Associations between the Maternal Antenatal and Postnatal Bond with the Child in a Community Sample?

Pazzagli

Buratta

Cenci

et al. 2022

IJERPH

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“…By contrast, in a large infant and toddler sample, Álvarez et al. (2021) found significant associations between all subscales of the PRFQ and child emotion regulation measured by parent report on the Ages and Stages Questionnaire. Better reported emotion regulation was negatively related to pre‐mentalizing modes scores and positively related to scores on the interest and curiosity in mental states and certainty about mental states subscales.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 86%

Early psychosocial risk factors and postnatal parental reflective functioning

Arkle,

Larkin,

Wang

et al. 2023

Infancy

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Psychosocial factors have been found to relate to parental reflective functioning (PRF), a parent's ability to mentalize about themselves and their child. Relations between maternal psychosocial risk factors and PRF were investigated in a community sample. A sample of mothers (n = 146) was assessed for risk factors when infants were 6 months, infant temperament was assessed using an observational measure, and PRF was assessed with the Parent Development Interview‐Revised (PDI). PRF was measured again with the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (PRFQ) when children were 4 years (n = 105) and 5 years (n = 92), with an additional sample of mothers (n = 48) tested at these two timepoints. Results showed that in infancy, total maternal psychosocial risk related to lower PDI‐PRF; regression analyses highlighted low socioeconomic status, unplanned pregnancy, and low maternal anxiety as independent predictors of lower PDI‐PRF. PDI‐PRF scores at 6 months did not relate to PRFQ scores, but PRFQ subscales showed stability over time from age 4–5. Results are discussed with regard to the impact of maternal psychosocial risk and infant temperament on PRF and the stability and concordance of PRF measures.

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“…The project is longitudinal in nature, wherefore this study refers to Phase 1, at which children (56% boys) were 1-3.5 years of age (mean = 27 months, standard deviation [SD] = 8.6), and Phase 2, at which children were 5-9 years old (mean = 84 months, SD = 12.9). This period is associated with the formation of self-regulation of emotion and the acquisition of rudimentary mentalization (i.e., reflective functioning) [20][21][22].…”

Section: Study Procedures and Samplementioning

confidence: 99%

“…This period is associated with the formation of self-regulation of emotion and the acquisition of rudimentary mentalization (i.e. reflective functioning) (20)(21)(22).…”

Section: Study Procedures and Samplementioning

confidence: 99%

On the complex and dimensional relationship of maternal posttraumatic stress disorder during early childhood and child outcomes at school-age

et al. 2023

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Background. Several studies have shown associations between maternal interpersonal violencerelated posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD), child mental health problems, and impaired socioemotional development. However, the existing literature lacks evidence linking constellations of risk factors such as maternal interpersonal-violence-related PTSD, psychopathology, and interactive behavior with toddlers and outcome measures at school-age. Methods. This study involved a prospective, longitudinal investigation of 62 mothers and examined the relationship between maternal variables measured when children were in early childhood (mean age 27 months), and child outcomes when children were school-age (age mean = 83.2 months) while retaining a focus on the context of maternal PTSD. To identify and weigh associated dimensions comparatively, we employed sparse canonical correlation analysis (sCCA) aimed at associating dimensions of a dataset of 20 maternal variables in early childhood with that of more than 20 child outcome variables (i.e., child psychopathology, life-events, and socioemotional skills) at school-age. Results. Phase 1 variables with the highest weights were those of maternal psychopathology: PTSD, depressive and dissociative symptoms, and self-report of parental stress. The highest weighted Phase 2 child outcome measures were those of child psychopathology: PTSD, anxiety, and depressive symptoms as well as peer bullying and victimization. Conclusions. sCCA revealed that trauma-related concepts in mothers were significantly and reliably associated with child psychopathology and other indicators of risk for intergenerational transmission of violence and victimization. The results highlight the dimensional and multifaceted nature-both for mothers as well as children-of the intergenerational transmission of violence and associated psychopathology.

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Maternal mentalization and child emotion regulation: A comparison of different phases of early childhood

Cited by 17 publications

References 29 publications

Does Parental Reflective Functioning Mediate the Associations between the Maternal Antenatal and Postnatal Bond with the Child in a Community Sample?

Does Parental Reflective Functioning Mediate the Associations between the Maternal Antenatal and Postnatal Bond with the Child in a Community Sample?

Early psychosocial risk factors and postnatal parental reflective functioning

On the complex and dimensional relationship of maternal posttraumatic stress disorder during early childhood and child outcomes at school-age

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