Hostile/Helpless maternal representations in pregnancy and later child removal: A pilot study

Abstract

This article presents the results of a small pilot study examining links between Hostile/Helpless (HH) representations of caregiving in pregnancy and later child removal by child protective services. The sample was drawn from a replication study of the Minding the Baby® attachment-based home-visiting intervention conducted in the United Kingdom, serving young first-time mothers in under resourced communities. The HH classification system (Lyons-Ruth etal.) was adapted for use with the Pregnancy Interview (PI) (Slade); 26 PIs were assessed (coders blinded) in a sample that included 13 mothers whose infants were removed from custody due to anticipated or documented maltreatment within 2 years of childbirth, and 13 mothers who did not have their infants removed. Mothers whose infants were removed from their custody had significantly higher HH scores than mothers of infants who were not removed from their care (F(1, 24)=14.500, p<.001), and the relation between overall HH classification and infant removal status was also significant (χ2 (1, N=26)=12.462, p<.001). Results suggest that prenatal maternal caregiving representations may predict postnatal relationship disruptions, and indicate the need for larger studies further testing this prenatal approach to maltreatment risk assessment in at-risk populations.