Mother's attachment representations of their premature infant at 6 and 18 months after birth

Abstract

The effects of premature birth on attachment have generally been examined from the infant's perspective. There is a lack of data concerning parental attachment representations toward a premature child. Because of the psychological stress engendered in parents confronted with a premature birth, we hypothesized that their attachment representations would be altered during the first months after the hospital discharge. Fifty families with a premature infant (25-33 gestation weeks) and a control group of 30 families with a full-term infant participated to the study. Perinatal risks were evaluated during hospitalization. To assess mothers' representations of their infant, the Working Model of the Child Interview (WMCI, Zeanah & Benoit, 1995 & Benoit, Zeanah, Parker, Nicholson, & Coolbear, 1997) were administered when their children were 6 and 18 months old. The severity of the perinatal risks was found to have an impact on the mothers' attachment representations. At six months, only 20% of the mothers of a prematurely born infant (30% at 18 months) had secure attachment representations, vs. 53% for the control group (57% at 18 months). Furthermore, mothers of low-risk premature infants more often had disengaged representations, whereas distorted representations were more frequent in the high-risk group of premature children. These findings suggest that the parental response to a premature birth is linked to the severity of postnatal risks. The fact that secure attachment representations are affected in mothers of low-risk infants just as much as they are in mothers of high-risk infants points to the need to conduct further studies aimed at evaluating whether preventive intervention for both low-risk and high-risk premature will be helpful.

Transition to parenthood in the neonatal care unit: a qualitative study and conceptual model designed to illuminate parent and professional views of the impact of webcam technology

“…Reasons include periods of separation and reduced opportunities for early bonding that may lead to decreased levels of maternal responsiveness and sensitivity [8, 9]. Also, concern for the immediate and long-term health and development of their baby has been shown to result in higher levels of stress, anxiety and depression in mothers, which may persist after the baby has been discharged [9, 10]. Importantly, the psychological well-being of mothers is known to influence early parent-child interactions and can impact the social, emotional, behavioural and cognitive development of children in the short and longer term [9].…”

Is level of prematurity a risk/plasticity factor at three years of age?

“…Compared to full-term infants, preterm infants and their mothers have higher rates of insecure attachment during the first twelve months after birth (Korja, Latva, & Lehtonen, 2012), particularly when infants have severe perinatal risks (Borghini et al, 2006). Parent-child attachment may influence child outcomes by compromising the affective communication system, providing fewer opportunities for a child to engage in positive social and learning interactions with their parents, and affecting how children organize their behaviour towards others (Ainsworth, 1979; Tronick, 1989).…”

Mothers' perceptions of their premature infant's communication: A description of two cases

“…They tend to be less alert and responsive (Montirosso, Borgatti, Trojan, Zanini, & Tronick, 2010;Tallandini & Scalembra, 2006). Secondly, mothers typically feel unprepared due to the early birth, which challenges the attachment process (Borghini et al, 2006). They face the stress of their baby being placed in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) immediately following birth.…”