Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Maternal learned helplessness and physiologic response to infant crying

W L Donovan

    Journal of Personality and Social Psychology
    |May 1, 1981
    PubMed
    Summary

    Mothers exposed to inescapable infant crying showed impaired performance in a subsequent task. Cardiac data suggest that control over crying influences attentional processing of distress cues.

    Related Concept Videos

    You might also read

    Related Articles

    Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

    Sort by
    Same author

    Maternal illusory control predicts socialization strategies and toddler compliance.

    Developmental psychology·2000
    Same author

    Maternal self-efficacy: illusory control and its effect on susceptibility to learned helplessness.

    Child development·1990
    Same author

    Maternal self-efficacy and infant attachment: integrating physiology, perceptions, and behavior.

    Child development·1989
    Same author

    Simulating conditions of learned helplessness: the effects of interventions and attributions.

    Child development·1985
    Same author

    Physiologic assessment of mother-infant attachment.

    Journal of the American Academy of Child Psychiatry·1985
    Same author

    Physiologic correlates of direct and averted gaze.

    Biological psychology·1980

    Area of Science:

    • Psychology
    • Neuroscience
    • Maternal Health

    Background:

    • Infant crying is a significant stressor for mothers.
    • Learned helplessness paradigms explore the impact of uncontrollable stressors on behavior.
    • Maternal responsiveness is crucial for infant well-being and development.

    Purpose of the Study:

    • To investigate the effects of perceived control over infant crying termination on maternal performance.
    • To examine cardiac responses as an index of attentional processing in mothers under different control conditions.
    • To explore the relationship between learned helplessness and maternal coping mechanisms.

    Main Methods:

    • Mothers of young infants were exposed to three conditions: controllable crying termination, uncontrollable crying, or passive listening.
    • Performance was assessed using an instrumental shuttle box task to measure escape behavior.
    • Cardiac responses (deceleration) were monitored to infer attentional processing.

    Main Results:

    • Mothers exposed to inescapable crying demonstrated significantly poorer performance on the subsequent task, including increased failure to escape and longer response latencies.
    • Only mothers who had prior experience controlling the cry exhibited cardiac deceleration, indicating heightened attentional processing.
    • No significant difference in response latency was found between inescapable and control groups.

    Conclusions:

    • Lack of control over infant crying can lead to learned helplessness, impairing maternal task performance.
    • Cardiac deceleration suggests that perceived control enhances attentional engagement with crying cues.
    • These findings highlight the importance of maternal agency in modulating stress responses and attentional processes related to infant crying.

    Related Experiment Videos