Sumary: A new study reveals that young mothers who feel emotionally connected to their unborn babies are more likely to form healthy, positive relationships with their children later. Researchers tracked 160 racially diverse, low-income mothers from pregnancy to their child’s toddler years, showing that prenatal bonding plays a key role in early childhood development.
Mothers with difficult relationships with their own parents showed weaker prenatal bonds and more negative emotions toward their infants. The findings challenge outdated stereotypes and underscore the need for pregnancy-focused support programs tailored to the lived experiences of young, underserved mothers.
Key Facts:
- Prenatal Bonding Matters: Strong emotional connections during pregnancy predict better mother-child relationships.
- Intergenerational Impact: Mothers with strained childhood relationships form weaker prenatal bonds.
- Support Gaps: Programs to foster bonding during pregnancy are promising but underfunded.
Source: Thomas Jefferson University
A recent study conducted by Nora Medina, PhD, a postdoctoral researcher of family and community medicine at Thomas Jefferson University, along with colleagues from the University of Chicago, highlights the importance of the emotional bond that a mother establishes with her child during pregnancy.
The study team followed 160 young, low-income, racially diverse mothers from pregnancy until their children were two and a half years old. Mothers who felt more connected to their babies during pregnancy were more likely to have a healthier, positive relationship with their children later.
Additionally, those who had more challenging relationships with their own parents had weaker prenatal connections and expressed more anger and other negative feelings towards their infants.
The research fills a gap in existing studies, which have not extensively explored how mothers’ attachment to their babies during pregnancy serves as a foundation for parent-child relationships later in life.
In addition, Dr. Medina’s research addresses historical misconceptions about young, low-income mothers as being problematic parents. The large majority of the young mothers in this study had strong prenatal connections to their infants and positive relationships with their toddlers.
“Parenting is challenging, and young, low-income mothers face additional stressors,” Dr. Medina says.
“I focused on studying mother-infant relationships within this population to produce findings that may inform parenting support programs more closely aligned with the lived experiences of young, low-income mothers.”
Dr. Medina suggests that support to promote strong parent-child relationships should begin during pregnancy. Interventions should help young mothers explore their past relationship experiences and recognize how they shape their expectations of parenthood. Programs that incorporate perinatal social workers or doulas could help facilitate these discussions and encourage healthier attachment patterns.
Despite the promising insights, Dr. Medina says funding remains a key barrier to accessibility of such support programs. Moving forward, she hopes to further investigate how familial and community-based support can help strengthen early mother-child bonds and improve long-term outcomes for young mothers and their children.
About this psychology and neurodevelopment research news
Author: Karuna Meda
Source: Thomas Jefferson University
Contact: Karuna Meda – Thomas Jefferson University
Image: The image is credited to Neuroscience News
Original Research: Open access.
“Young mothers’ prenatal attachment and later attachment-related representations of their young children” by Nora Medina et al. Infant Mental Health Journal Infancy and Early Childhood
Abstract
Young mothers’ prenatal attachment and later attachment-related representations of their young children
Although mother-to-infant attachment begins during pregnancy, few studies have explored correlates of prenatal attachment and associations with later measures of attachment representations.
This study explored whether prenatal attachment is related to attachment representations during toddlerhood and whether associations between them reflect the broader quality of mothers’ relationships.
Young, ethnically/racially diverse, low-income American women (n = 160) were followed from pregnancy through 30 months postpartum.
Questionnaires assessed prenatal attachment (Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale [MAAS]) and mothers’ relationships prenatally (Inventory of Parent and Peer Attachment [IPPA]; Social Provisions Scale [SPS]).
At 30 months, the Working Model of the Child Interview (WMCI) assessed attachment representation classifications (balanced, disengaged, distorted) and affective themes.
Stronger prenatal attachment was associated with balanced representations of the child, greater positive affect, and less negative affect at 30 months, even when accounting for quality of mothers’ other relationships.
Relationship quality generally and with the parent figure and infant’s father specifically, was associated with prenatal attachment, and relationship quality with the parent figure was related to 30-month attachment representations.
Findings support theory that mother-to-child attachment formed during pregnancy contributes to attachment representations and affective qualities of the relationship years later. Data highlight the role young mothers’ parent figures play during the transition to parenthood.
