Predicting disturbed parental awareness in mothers with a newborn infant: test of a theoretical model

Abstract

Parental awareness refers to parents' perceptions and making sense out of children's responses and behaviours. This study examined a theoretical model on the determinants of disturbed parental awareness, with a central place given to Belsky's buffer hypothesis. Maternal characteristics were hypothesized to have direct effects on parental awareness, whereas effects of negative childhood experiences and low levels of social support were regarded as being mediated by maternal characteristics. The model was examined in a community sample of 101 mothers from different socioeconomic backgrounds with a zero‐to‐three infant. Social nurses providing home visits reported on parental awareness, childhood experiences, social support, and maternal characteristics. Results supported a modified model that added a direct pathway between childhood experiences and parental awareness, supporting the intergenerational transmission hypothesis. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

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