Origins of maternal role satisfaction and its influences upon maternal interactive behavior and infant-mother attachment

Abstract

This longitudinal study sought to examine the origins of maternal role satisfaction, and the influence of mothers' perceptions of their various roles upon subsequent interactions with their infants and the quality of infants' 1-year attachment to mother. Interviews and questionnaires provided assessments of first-time mothers' ( N = 32) prenatal marital satisfaction and social support as well as 4-month perceptions of their various life roles (self, wife, homemaker, employee); observations were employed to assess mothers' 9-month interactive behaviors and the quality of infant-mother attachment at 1 year. Path analysis revealed that mothers reporting high levels of satisfaction with their marriages and high levels of family support during the prenatal period were most likely to report a higher degree of role satisfaction at 4 months. High levels of role satisfaction were in turn predictive of optimal (i.e., sensitive) interactions with infants at 9 months, and these sensitive interactions contributed to development of secure infant-mother attachments by 1 year. These findings demonstrate the importance of mothers' social contexts in shaping their perceptions of themselves and the importance of these perceptions in guiding mothers' interactions and relationships with their infants.