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Published on: February 18, 2012

Sleep and Attachment in Preterm Infants

A J Schwichtenberg1, Prachi E Shah, Julie Poehlmann

  • 1Department of Human Development and Family Studies, Waisman Center, University of Wisconsin-Madison.

Infant Mental Health Journal
|March 14, 2013
PubMed

Insights

Infant daytime sleep and responsive parenting are key for secure infant-mother attachment in preterm infants. Nighttime sleep did not significantly impact attachment in this study.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Neonatal Research
  • Child Psychiatry

Background:

  • Infants born preterm face higher risks of social-emotional challenges.
  • Factors influencing these risks, particularly in early development, remain under-researched.
  • Infant sleep is a potential biosocial factor impacting social-emotional development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate infant sleep patterns and parenting quality as predictors of infant-mother attachment.
  • To explore the role of daytime and nighttime sleep in preterm infants' attachment security.
  • To examine the interplay between sleep, parenting, and attachment in this vulnerable population.

Main Methods:

  • Prospective longitudinal study design.
  • Involved 171 infants born preterm.
  • Utilized parent-reported sleep data, observed parenting quality, and structural equation modeling to assess attachment security.

Main Results:

  • More daytime sleep in infants was associated with secure infant-mother attachment.
  • Positive and responsive parenting significantly predicted secure attachment.
  • Parent-reported nighttime sleep patterns showed no significant association with attachment security.

Conclusions:

  • Daytime sleep duration and quality of parenting are crucial for developing secure attachment relationships in preterm infants.
  • Targeting daytime sleep and enhancing responsive parenting may support social-emotional development in this population.
  • Nighttime sleep patterns may not be as critical for attachment as daytime sleep in preterm infants.

Keywords:
attachmentpretermsleep

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