Interactive behaviors between mothers and their prematurely born infants in the face-to-face Still-Face Paradigm

Taís Chiodelli,Pedro Lopes Dos Santos,Veronica Aparecida Pereira,Olga Maria Piazentin Rolim Rodrigues,Marina Fuertes

doi:10.1590/1982-0275202037e180164

Abstract

Abstract The present study compared and correlated interactive behaviors of 15 mothers and their very preterm infants (gestational age: 28-32 weeks). Mothers and infants were observed in the experimental Face-to-Face Still-Face paradigm, consisting of three episodes: in the first and third episodes (play and reunion episodes), mother and infant interact freely; in the second (still-face episode), the mother maintains a still-face expression. The behaviors of the infants were allocated in three categories: positive social orientation, negative social orientation and self-regulation. Maternal behaviors were classified into positive and negative social orientation. Intragroup comparisons indicated that maternal vocalizations were significantly higher in the play episode. Compared to other studies with preterm infants, babies in this study exhibit fewer interactive behaviors and more self-soothing behaviors in the still-face episode. In addition, in the reunion episode, values of the behaviors presented in the play episode were recovered. Correlations between intrusive maternal behaviors and noninteractive or negative-interaction behaviors of the infant suggest the relevance of providing intervention to promote maternal sensitivity.

Highlights

Universidade Federal da Grande Dourados, Faculdade de Ciências Humanas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Psicologia
For maternal behaviors we only considered the play and reunion episodes, since in the still-face episode the mother was instructed to remain unresponsive and only to maintain eye contact
We only found significant differences in maternal behaviors between the play and reunion episodes regarding vocalizing directly to the infant

Summary

Introduction

Universidade Federal da Grande Dourados, Faculdade de Ciências Humanas, Programa de Pós-Graduação em Psicologia. Os comportamentos dos bebês foram analisados conforme três categorias: orientação social positiva, orientação social negativa e autorregulação. As correlações entre comportamentos maternos intrusivos e comportamentos não interativos ou de interação negativa com o bebê sugerem a relevância de se oferecerem intervenções para promover a sensibilidade materna. Child development and learning largely depend on the quality of the interactions experienced The success of these interactions contributes to the mutual regulation of interactions (Gianino & Tronick, 1988). In this process of mutual regulation, both partners (child and parent) contribute to engaging behavior, interactive errors, and reparation (Beeghly & Tronick, 2011) During these interactions, parents’ sensitivity to the infant’s needs combined with child cooperation promote positive and reciprocal relationships (Beeghly, Fuertes, Liu, Delonis, & Tronick, 2011)

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Conclusion