The aims of the current study were to examine the effect of fathers' and mothers' pre and postnatal mental health on mother-infant and father-infant interactions. Mental health was broadly defined to include anxiety, depression and PTSD. A community sample of 44 mothers and 40 fathers from 45 families completed questionnaire measures of mental health in late pregnancy and three months postpartum. Mother-infant and father-infant interactions were observed and videoed three months postpartum and analysed using the CARE-index. Results showed that prenatal mental health, in particular anxiety, was associated with parent-infant interactions to a greater extent than postnatal mental health. Fathers' prenatal symptoms were associated with higher paternal unresponsiveness and infant passivity whilst fathers' postnatal symptoms were associated with higher levels of infant difficulty in the father-baby interaction. The results also indicated that mothers and fathers interaction with their babies were similar, both on average and within the couples, with 34
作者:Ylva, Parfitt;Alison, Pike;Susan, Ayers
来源:Infant behavior & development 2013 年 36卷 4期