Cortisol, hedonics, and maternal responsiveness in human mothers

New mothers are more attracted to the body odor of newborn infants than are nonmothers. In this study we investigated the relation of postpartum hormones and of prior experience with infants to this enhanced maternal attraction to infant odors. New mothers were asked to complete a hedonics task, using a pleasantness scale to provide an attraction score to different odorants presented on a cotton substrate in a 1-pt Baskin-Robbins container. Mothers were "blind" to the contents of the container. Participants also completed an extensive set of 100-item likert scales concerning their attitudes toward infants, care taking, own maternal adequacy, and other interpersonal relations. Mothers were videotaped interacting with their infants and provided salivary samples prior to the interaction. Salivary samples were assayed by radioimmunoassay (RIA) for salivary concentrations of cortisol, progesterone, and testosterone. Results show that first-time mothers with higher cortisol concentrations were more attracted to their own infant's body odor. Mothers with higher cortisol levels were also better able to recognize their own infants' odors. While cortisol was not related to attitudinal measures of maternal responsiveness, mothers with more prior experience interacting with infants exhibited both more attraction to infant odors and more positive maternal attitudes. Together, prior maternal experience and postpartum cortisol explain a significant proportion of the variance in mothers' attraction to newborn infant odors. These relations are discussed in terms of the variety of "meanings" cortisol could have during the postpartum period.

Postpartum factors related to mother's attraction to newborn infant odors

Hedonic responses to a variety of infant (general body, urine, and feces) and noninfant (lotion, cheese, and spice) odorants were compared in four groups of subjects: new mothers, mothers a 1-month postpartum, and female and male nonparents. Using standard scaling procedures, subjects rated each of the odorants twice on a scale from extremely unpleasant (-20.5) to extremely pleasant (+20.5). In addition, all subjects completed a set of attitude questionnaires, and mothers also answered a childbirth questionnaire and were observed while feeding their infants.

The effects of a social support group on depression, maternal attitudes and behavior in new mothers

The present study examined the effects of a postpartum Social Support Group intervention on mood state, attitudes and behavior of new mothers. Intervention conditions consisted of an eight session Social Support intervention (n = 44), a no intervention condition (n = 83) and a Group-by-Mail intervention (n = 15). Attitudinal and behavioral assessments were made before and after the interventions at 6 and 20 weeks postpartum, respectively. The primary results indicate that regardless of intervention condition mothers undergo an improvement in mood from 2 weeks to 5 months postpartum. Although the Social Support intervention did not alleviate maternal depression and, in fact, may be detrimental to depressed mothers' self-confidence, it did increase mothers' proximal attention to their infants.

Hand, arm, and facial actions of young infants to a social and nonsocial stimulus

Do 9-15-week-old infants produce differentially organized hand and arm actions in relation to affective states when presented with social and nonsocial stimuli? This question was examined by observing 8 infants longitudinally. They were observed when facing their active and passive mother and an active and passive doll during 4 visits at biweekly intervals. Videotapes were coded in real time using the following measures: Vocalization, Gaze, and Gaze Avert; for face, Smiling, Distressed, and Neutral; for hands, Pointing, Open, Curled, and Closed; and for arms, Extended and At Side. Co-occurrence and lag sequential analyses showed that hand actions were organized with other infant actions to form unique behavioral linkages in each of the 4 conditions. The implications of these findings for the development of nonverbal communication are discussed.

Maternal preference between premature twins up to age four

This paper describes methods of measuring a preference a mother develops for one twin over the other and describes the effect such preference has on the intellectual functioning and behavior of 24 twin pairs over 4 years. Results indicate that the majority of mothers develops a preference for one premature twin within 2 weeks after birth and maintains this preference for at least 4 years. The preferred twin has fewer behavior problems and a higher IQ at age 4. However, temperament is not correlated with preferential status.

Continuities and discontinuities in the development of 64 very small premature infants to 4 years of age

The psychiatric, psychological, school and overall family functioning of 64 very small premature infants was assessed from birth up to 48 mnths of age. Results indicated that 43% of infants scored in the abnormal range on a behaviour rating scale filled in by the mothers and 24% on a teacher rating scale at age 4. However, only 11% of the children received a psychiatric diagnosis. Traditional attachment ratings at 1 yr were not related to psychiatric status at age 4, but family functioning was. Disturbed children had also suffered more perinatal difficulties.

Factors influencing maternal responsiveness in humans: usefulness of an animal model

In this article we review some of the hormonal, sensory and experiential factors that regulate the onset and early maintenance of maternal responsiveness in rat and human mothers. We discuss data suggesting that, in humans, pregnancy is associated with changes in feelings and attitudes that may bear on adjustment to motherhood postpartum. Preliminary studies indicate that these changes are probably not hormonally mediated but are associated with a variety of psychosocial factors. Once women give birth, there is some suggestion that they undergo a period of elevated "responsiveness" which may be influenced by puerperal hormones and during which experiences with the newborn take on a special salience. Following the early postpartum period, a variety of factors influence maternal responsiveness, including the mother's affective state, her social relationships, and experiences caring for young. We discuss the relative contributions of psychological and physiological influences to maternal responsiveness at different stages of the maternity cycle.

The influence of down's syndrome on sibling interaction

Home observations were done on sibling interactions in 31 families with a child having Down's syndrome and a non-handicapped sibling. The siblings with Down's syndrome initiated less prosocial and agonistic behaviour, but imitated more frequently than their non-handicapped siblings. These effects were found regardless of birth order. There were no effects of gender. Higher levels of prosocial behaviours among large interval dyads and in dyads with a second-born Down's syndrome child were primarily due to the age of the non-handicapped sibling. Results were similar to those in previous "normative" studies of sibling interactions.

Maternal behavior and attachment in low-birth-weight twins and singletons

Early mother-infant interaction and later security of attachment were assessed for 17 pairs of twins, 5 singleton survivors of twin pairs, and 20 singletons, all low-birth-weight preterm infants. Mother and infant behavior during home observations at 6 weeks and 3, 6, and 9 months was rated on scales developed by Ainsworth and Egeland and Brunquell. A, B, and C patterns of behavior in the Strange Situation conformed to the frequencies predicted from prior full-term samples and were not affected by twinship. However, the proportion of B1 and B4 dyads in the B group significantly exceeded that predicted from normative data. Mothers in B2 and B3 dyads were rated more sensitive and responsive than all others at all 4 observations. Contrary to our expectations that mothers in A and C dyads would receive the lowest ratings, this occurred only at 6 weeks. At later observations mothers in B1 and B4 dyads consistently received the lowest ratings. The discussion focuses on possible reasons for this unexpected finding.

Mother-child relationships in the premature nursery: an observational study

In an attempt to develop objective criteria for the process of mother-child bonding, 18 premature infants with a birth weight of less than 1,501 gm were regularly observed alone and together with their mothers during each nursery visit and three home visits, one, two, and three months after discharge from the hospital. Results indicate that (1) mothers visit longer and increase their caretaking behaviors over visits and remain consistent in the rank order of their caretaking behaviors over time. (2) Caretaking behaviors are highly intercorrelated and mothers can be divided into those who show a consistently high, medium, and low amount of interaction with their infants. (3) Highly interacting mothers also visit and telephone the nursery more and stimulate their infants more at home. Mothers who stimulate their infants little in the nursery also visit and phone less and stimulate them little at home. (4) Infant behaviors showed that infants whose gestation was less than 29 weeks did not respond to any type of maternal stimulation. Infants whose gestation was more than 29 weeks, however, showed significantly more eye-openings when their mothers touched them.