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Updated: Aug 5, 2025

A Common Marmoset Model of Mother-Infant Intervention for Breastfeeding Disorders in the Presence of Paternal Inhibition and Maternal Neglect
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A Common Marmoset Model of Mother-Infant Intervention for Breastfeeding Disorders in the Presence of Paternal Inhibition and Maternal Neglect

Published on: September 22, 2023

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Parental Pre and Postnatal Depression: The Longitudinal Associations with Child Negative Affectivity and

Loredana Lucarelli1, Laura Vismara1, Irene Chatoor2,3

  • 1Department of Pedagogy, Psychology, Philosophy, University of Cagliari, 09123 Cagliari, Italy.

Children (Basel, Switzerland)
|March 29, 2023
PubMed

Insights

Paternal and maternal depression significantly impacts infant emotionality and caregiver interactions. Early interventions are crucial for child development, considering cumulative risks from both parents.

Area of Science:

  • Perinatal mental health
  • Child development
  • Parent-child relationships

Background:

  • Maternal perinatal depression's effect on child regulation is known.
  • Limited research exists on paternal perinatal depression's impact on caregiver-infant dynamics and child development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate maternal and paternal depression's association with infant emotionality.
  • To examine the link between parental depression and mother-infant feeding interactions.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal study of 136 first-time parent couples and their infants at 3 and 6 months.
  • Edinburgh Postpartum Depression Scale administered during pregnancy and at 3 and 6 months postpartum.
  • Infant Behavior Questionnaire and Feeding Scale used to assess infant emotionality and mother-infant interactions.

Main Results:

  • Maternal and paternal depression levels remained stable over time.
  • Maternal depression correlated with negative affect during feeding, infant food refusal, and interactional conflict.
  • Paternal depression was linked to mother-child interactional conflict, and higher parental depression scores related to infant negative emotionality.

Conclusions:

  • Parental depression, both maternal and paternal, negatively affects infant emotionality and caregiver interactions.
  • A cumulative risk model is essential for supporting child development.
  • Early caregiver-child interventions are recommended to mitigate risks associated with parental depression.
Abstract

Keywords:
child negative affectivityfeeding interactionspostnatal parental depressionprenatal parental depression

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