Abstract
BackgroundMaternal–Fetal Attachment (MFA) describes the cognitive-representational, emotional, and behavioral aspects of the mother–fetus relationship that develops during pregnancy.We present two studies conducted on pregnant Italian women. In Study I, we aimed to explore multifaceted associations of MFA with variables important for a healthy pregnancy (e.g., maternal mental health, the couple’s relationship). In Study II, we investigated the predictive role of MFA on observed maternal caregiving during the first months of the infant’s life.MethodsIn Study I, 113 pregnant Italian women were assessed on MFA (Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale, MAAS), maternal depression (Beck Depression Inventory-II, BDI-II), maternal anxiety (State Trait Anxiety Inventory – State version, STAI), adjustment of the couple (Dyadic Adjustment Scale, DAS), and perceived parental care (The Parental Bonding Instrument, PBI). In Study II, 29 mother–infant pairs were followed up at 4 months to assess observational variables of maternal caregiving through the Emotional Availability Scale (EAS) and to test for an association with MFA in pregnancy.ResultsStudy I showed a significant association between MFA and the quality of the couple relationship (β = .49, P < .001) and between MFA and the recall of memories of care received in childhood (β = .22, P = .025). Study II showed a predictive effect of MFA on maternal structuring observed during mother–infant interactions at 4 months of age (β = 0.36, P = .046).ConclusionThe study points out relevant relationship contexts that might receive care and support throughout pregnancy to protect MFA. The findings also provide thoughtful insights on the role of MFA in early maternal caregiving, suggesting that MFA might be a candidate as one putative antecedent of mother–infant interaction processes.
Highlights
Maternal–Fetal Attachment (MFA) describes the cognitive-representational, emotional, and behavioral aspects of the mother–fetus relationship that develops during pregnancy.We present two studies conducted on pregnant Italian women
Study I showed a significant association between MFA and the quality of the couple relationship (β = .49, P < .001) and between MFA and the recall of memories of care received in childhood (β = .22, P = .025)
The findings provide thoughtful insights on the role of MFA in early maternal caregiving, suggesting that MFA might be a candidate as one putative antecedent of mother–infant interaction processes
Summary
Maternal–Fetal Attachment (MFA) describes the cognitive-representational, emotional, and behavioral aspects of the mother–fetus relationship that develops during pregnancy.We present two studies conducted on pregnant Italian women. Several descriptions have been proposed for MFA, suggesting that the concept has a multi-dimensional nature encompassing thoughts, feelings, and dispositions to protect, interact with, and meet the needs of the fetus [7, 10, 11] Such a prenatal bond seems to anticipate the key ingredients of the post-natal caregiving system [12], which comprises the child’s protection, comfort, and care, through parental perception and responsiveness to child’s signals, support to the exploration, and the provision of comfort in times of distress [13, 14]. When maternal caregiving through direct observations of mother–infant free play interactions were assessed, no significant association between MFA and maternal care were found [17], suggesting that the extant research on MFA and maternal caregiving provide findings limited by parent-reported assessment of caregiving quality and leaves the role of MFA in observable caregiving practices as an open question
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