Infant Emotion Regulation Research Articles

Social and Communication Development in Infants with Isolated Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum

ObjectiveTo evaluate the development of social behavior, communication, emotion regulation, and repetitive behaviors in infants with congenital malformation of the corpus callosum, specifically those with isolated Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum (ACC) in comparison to typically developing infants. Study DesignThis case-control longitudinal observation study examined parent report of social behavior, social-communication, emotion regulation, and repetitive behavior development in community ascertained infants (n = 156) and infants with isolated ACC (n = 57) between 12 and 24 months of age. ResultsInfants with isolated ACC produced fewer words at 12- (p = 0.003) 18- (p < 0.001), and 24-months of age (p = 0.003), and fewer gestures at 12- (p < 0.001), 18- (p < 0.001), and 24-months of age (p < 0.001). In addition, the ACC group demonstrated delays in reciprocal social behavior at 18-months (p = 0.01) and social competence at 12- (p < 0.001) and 18-months (p = 0.01). No concerns were noted in emotion regulation or restricted and repetitive behavior and social behavior appears to normalize at 24 months. ConclusionsExisting data suggests heterogeneity in developmental outcomes among individuals with isolated ACC. The current findings fill a gap in knowledge about development in the second year of life. Surveillance of social and communication ability in infants with ACC may be warranted. The role of the corpus callosum in facilitating rapid interhemispheric information processing impacts skills beyond the motor system. More work is needed to identify intervention targets for infants and toddlers with ACC.

The effectiveness of maternal regulatory attempts in the development of infant emotion regulation.

Caregivers are instrumental in the development of infant emotion regulation; however, few studies have focused on delineating the real-time effectiveness of strategies that caregivers use to reduce infant distress. It is also unclear whether certain caregiver traits facilitate engagement in more successful regulation strategies. This study addressed these gaps by: (1) examining the differential effectiveness of maternal regulatory attempts (MRAs; behavioral strategies initiated by mothers to assist infants with regulating emotional states) in reducing 12- to 24-month-old infants' frustration during a toy removal task; and (2) assessing whether maternal mind-mindedness (mothers' attunement to their infant's mental state) predicted mothers' selection of MRAs. Multilevel modeling revealed that distraction and control were the most effective MRAs in reducing infant negative affect across 5-s intervals (N=82dyads; M infant age=18months; 45 females). Greater use of non-attuned mind-related speech predicted less engagement in effective MRAs, supporting a link between caregivers' socio-cognitive skills and provision of in-the-moment regulation support. These findings highlight the value of considering caregiver regulatory behaviors as a target for elucidating how maternal socialization of emotion regulation occurs in real-time. They also underscore mothers' important role as socializing agents in the development of this foundational developmental ability.

Public health nurse-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for postpartum depression: Assessing the effects of maternal treatment on infant emotion regulation.

The effects of maternal postpartum depression (PPD) on offspring emotion regulation (ER) are particularly deleterious as difficulties with ER predict an increased risk of psychopathology. This study examined the impact of maternal participation in a public health nurse (PHN)-delivered group cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on infant ER. Mothers/birthing parents were ≥ 18 years old with an Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS) score ≥ 10, and infants were < 12 months. Between 2017 and 2020, 141 mother-infant dyads were randomized to experimental or control groups. Infant ER was measured at baseline (T1) and nine weeks later (T2) using two neurophysiological measures (frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) and high-frequency heart rate variability (HF-HRV)), and informant-report of infant temperament. Mothers were a mean of 30.8 years old (SD = 4.7), 92.3% were married/ common-law, and infants were a mean of 5.4 months old (SD = 2.9) and 52.1% were male. A statistically significant group-by-time interaction was found to predict change in HF-HRV between T1 and T2 (F(1,68.3) = 4.04, p = .04), but no significant interaction predicted change in FAA or temperament. Results suggest that PHN-delivered group CBT for PPD may lead to adaptive changes in a neurophysiological marker of infant ER, highlighting the importance of early maternal intervention.

The impact of peer-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy for postpartum depression on infant emotion regulation

BackgroundPostpartum depression (PPD) affects up to one in five and negatively affects mothers, birthing parents, and their infants. The impact of PPD exposure on infant emotion regulation (ER) may be particularly harmful given its associations with later psychiatric problems. It remains unclear if treating maternal PPD can improve infant ER. ObjectiveTo examine the impact of a nine-week peer-delivered group cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) intervention on infant ER assessed across physiological and behavioral levels. MethodsSeventy-three mother-infant dyads were enrolled in a randomized controlled trial from 2018 to 2020. Mothers/birthing parents were randomized to the experimental group or waitlist control group. Measures of infant ER were collected at baseline (T1) and nine weeks later (T2). Infant ER was assessed using two physiological measures (frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) and High Frequency-Heart Rate Variability (HF-HRV)), and parental-report of infant temperament. ResultsExperimental group infants displayed more adaptive changes in both physiological markers of infant ER from T1 to T2 (FAA (F(1,56) = 4.16, p = .046) and HF-HRV (F(1,28.1) = 5.57, p = .03)) than those in the waitlist control group. Despite improvements in maternal PPD, no differences were noted in infant temperament from T1 to T2. LimitationsA limited sample size, potential lack of generalizability of our results to other populations, and an absence of long-term data collection. ConclusionsA scalable intervention designed for those with PPD may be capable of adaptively improving infant ER. Replication in larger samples is needed to determine if maternal treatment can help disrupt the transmission of psychiatric risk from mothers/birthing parents to their infants.

Postnatal maternal distress, infant subcortical brain macrostructure and emotional regulation

BackgroundMaternal distress is associated with an increased risk for adverse emotional development in infants, including difficulties with emotion regulation. Prenatal maternal distress has been associated with alterations in infant brain development. However, less is known about these associations with postnatal maternal distress, despite this being an important modifiable risk factor that can promote healthy brain development and emotional outcomes in infants. Methods & resultsInfants underwent magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and mothers completed standardized questionnaires concerning their levels of perceived distress 2–5 months postpartum. Infant emotion regulation was assessed at 8–11 months via maternal report. When examining the associations between maternal distress and infant macrostructure, maternal anxiety was associated with infant right pallidum volumes. Increased display of negative emotions at 8–11 months of age was associated with smaller hippocampal volumes and this association was stronger in girls than boys. ConclusionFindings suggest that postnatal maternal distress may be associated with early infant brain development and emphasize the importance of maternal mental health, supporting previous work. Furthermore, macrostructural properties of infant subcortical structures may be further investigated as potential biomarkers to identify infants at risk of adverse emotional outcomes.

Intensity of Maternal Anxiety and Depressive Symptoms in Pregnancy Is Associated with Infant Emotional Regulation Problems.

This study aimed to investigate the effects of the intensity and directionality of antenatal maternal depressive and anxiety symptoms on infant negative affectivity and crying, also taking into account potential confounders. The role of socioeconomic status (SES) as a possible moderating factor of the association between antenatal maternal distress and infant negative outcomes was also explored. More than one hundred women filled in the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale and the State-Trait Anxiety Inventory to assess depressive and anxiety symptoms, respectively, during the third trimester of pregnancy and three months after delivery. Mothers also filled in the Infant Behavior Questionnaire and a parental diary to evaluate negative affectivity and crying, respectively, when their infants were 3 months old. SES was assessed through the Hollingshead classification. The intensity of antenatal maternal symptoms and SES were associated with infant negative affectivity, but not with crying. However, SES moderated the association between the intensity of maternal symptoms and infant crying. The direction of maternal symptoms (anxiety versus depression) was not associated with both infant negative affectivity and crying. Our findings contribute to elucidating the role played by the intensity of maternal stress in pregnancy-alone and in interaction with SES-in determining individual differences in infant emotional regulation, thus emphasizing the importance of timely psychological interventions for pregnant women who experience psychological distress.

공감활동이 유아 정서조절능력과 배려행동에 미치는 영향에 대한 연구

The purpose of this study is to determine the effect of sympathetic activity using picture books on children's emotional regulation ability and considerate behavior. The experiment was conducted by placing 17 people each in an experimental group and a control group. The experiment was conducted 14 times over 7 weeks, and it was verified by conducting pre- and post-tests on whether the use of picture books had an effect on infant emotional regulation and considerate behavior.&#x0D; As a result of the study, first, the effect of sympathetic activity using picture books to improve overall emotion regulation ability could be verified, but the effects of adaptive emotion regulation and negative emotion regulation, which are sub-factors, could not be verified statistically.&#x0D; Second, the effect of using the picture books on improving not only the overall considerate behavior but also the sub-factors of the considerate behaviors were statistically verified. Through this, it was verified that children's sympathetic activities using picture books have a positive effect on children's behaviors to recognize the thoughts and emotions of the other person, adjust and maintain them appropriately, and be considerate of the other person. In future research, measurement tools that can connect and measure the sub-factors of emotional regulation ability and considerate behavior more specifically are developed and need to be utilized in research.

Maternal Mind-mindedness, Styles of Interaction, and Mother–Infant Emotion Regulation: Associations With Maternal Mental Health at Infant Age of Three Months

Maternal Mind-mindedness, Styles of Interaction, and Mother–Infant Emotion Regulation: Associations With Maternal Mental Health at Infant Age of Three Months

Transient Early Fine Motor Abnormalities in Infants Born to COVID-19 Mothers Are Associated With Placental Hypoxia and Ischemia

Background: Long-term effects of Coronavirus Disease 2019 (COVID-19) on infants born to infected mothers are not clear. Fine motor skills are crucial for the development of infant emotional regulation, learning ability and social skills.Methods: Clinical information of 100 infants born to 98 mothers (COVID-19 n = 31, non-COVID-19 n = 67) were collected. Infants were follow-up up to 9 months post-partum. The placental tissues were examined for SARS-CoV-2 infection, pathological changes, cytokines, and mtDNA content.Results: Decreased placental oxygen and nutrient transport capacity were found in infected pregnant women. Increased IL-2, IL-6, TNF-α, and IFN-γ were detected in trophoblast cells and maternal blood of COVID-19 placentas. Elevated early fine motor abnormal-ities and increased serum TNI (troponin I) levels at delivery were observed in infants born to mothers with COVID-19. Increased abnormal mitochondria and elevated mtDNA content were found in the placentas from infected mothers. The placental mtDNA content of three infants with abnormal DDST were increased by 4, 7, and 10%, respectively, compared to the mean of the COVID-19 group. The Maternal Vascular Malperfusion (MVM), elevated cytokines and increased placental mtDNA content in mothers with COVID-19 might be associated with transient early fine motor abnormalities in infants. These abnormalities are only temporary, and they could be corrected by daily training.Conclusions: Babies born to COVID-19 mothers with mild symptoms appeared to have little or no excess long-term risks of abnormal physical and neurobehavioral development as compared with the infants delivered by non-COVID-19 mothers.

Second-by-second infant and mother emotion regulation and coregulation processes.

Context-appropriate infant physiological functioning may support emotion regulation and mother-infant emotion coregulation. Among a sample of 210 low-income Mexican-origin mothers and their 24-week-old infants, dynamic structural equation modeling (DSEM) was used to examine whether within-infant vagal functioning accounted for between-dyad differences in within-dyad second-by-second emotion regulation and coregulation during free play. Vagal functioning was captured by within-infant mean and variability (standard deviation) of respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) during free play. Infant emotion regulation was quantified as emotional equilibria (within-person mean), volatility (within-person deviation from equilibrium), carryover (how quickly equilibrium is restored following a disturbance), and feedback loops (the extent to which prior affect dampens or amplifies subsequent affect) in positive and negative affect during free play; coregulation was quantified as the influence of one partner's affect on the other's subsequent affect. Among infants with lower RSA variability, positive affect fluctuated around a higher equilibrium, and negative affect fluctuated around a lower equilibrium; these infants exhibited feedback loops where their positive affect dampened their subsequent negative affect. As expected, infants with higher mean RSA exhibited more volatility in positive affect, feedback loops between their positive and negative affect, and stronger mother-driven emotion coregulation. The results highlight differences in simultaneously occurring biological and emotion regulation.

Still-face Effect in Dogs (Canis familiaris). A Pilot Study

ABSTRACT The Still-face Paradigm has been widely used for the assessment of emotion regulation in infants, as well as for the study of the mother-child relationship. Given the close bond that dogs have with humans, the purpose of this research was to evaluate, through an exploratory descriptive study, the presence of the Still-face effect in dogs. To this end, a group of Beagle dogs were exposed to three one-minute phases in which first, an unknown experimenter interacted actively and positively with each dog (Interaction). Then, suddenly, she interrupted the interaction and remained passive, with a non-expressive face and without speaking or petting the dog (Still-face). Finally, the experimenter reestablished the interaction (Reunion). Our results showed a decrease in affiliative behaviors in dogs during the Still-face phase according to changes in the human’s behavior, a pattern similar to the one previously found in infants. Contrary to expectations, no stress-related behaviors were shown during that phase. A carry-over effect was also observed in the Reunion phase. This study provides information about the human-dog interaction and the effects of its disruption on dogs’ behaviors.

The impact of a mother-infant intervention on parenting and infant response to challenge: A pilot randomized controlled trial with adolescent mothers in El Salvador.

A pilot randomized controlled trial (RCT) was conducted in El Salvador of an intervention ('Thula Sana') previously shown to enhance maternal sensitivity and infant security of attachment in a South African sample. In El Salvador, trained community workers delivered the intervention from late pregnancy to 6 months postpartum as part of a home-visiting programme. The sample comprised 64 pregnant adolescent women, aged 14-19 years, living in predominantly rural settings. They were randomised to receive either the intervention or normal care. Demographic information was collected at baseline and, immediately post-intervention, blind assessments were made of parental sensitivity and infant emotion regulation. The intervention was found to have a substantial positive impact on maternal sensitivity. Further, compared to control group, infants in the intervention group showed more regulated behaviour: in a social challenge task they showed more attempts to restore communication, and in a non-social challenge task they showed more social and goal-directed behaviour. This replication and extension of the South African findings in a small El Salvador sample shows promise and justifies the conduct of a large-scale RCT in a Central or South American context.

Changes in infant emotion regulation following maternal cognitive behavioral therapy for postpartum depression.

Exposure to maternal postpartum depression (PPD) increases the risk for emotion regulatory and psychiatric problems in offspring. This study aimed to determine if maternal cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for PPD improves infant emotion regulatory capacity. Participants were 40 infants of mothers with a primary diagnosis of major depressive disorder matched 1:1-40 healthy control infants of nondepressed mothers on infant age, sex, and socioeconomic status. Mothers with PPD received nine weeks of group CBT. Dyads were tested at two time points. Visit 1 occurred following the first CBT session (baseline visit for control infants). Visit 2 took place after CBT (nine weeks post-baseline for controls). At both visits, infant emotion regulation was assessed using resting-state frontal electroencephalography alpha asymmetry (FAA), heart rate variability (HRV), and maternal and partner ratings of orientation or regulation behaviors (infant behavior questionnaire-revised [short form]). Changes in maternal characteristics (depression, bonding, and emotion regulation) from pretreatment to posttreatment were examined to determine if they explained infant changes. At Visit 1, infants of women with PPD exhibited poorer emotion regulation relative to the healthy control infants. At Visit 2, following maternal PPD treatment, infants exhibited improved emotion regulation (shifted from right to left FAA [p = .01, d = 0.60], increased HRV [p = .003, d = 0.56], mother [p = .015, d = 0.29] and partner [p = .049, d = 0.35] reported orientation or regulation behaviors) such that they no longer differed from the healthy control infants. Changes in maternal characteristics did not appear to account for these changes. Treating PPD may promote adaptive changes in physiological and behavioral systems underlying infant emotion regulation.

Skin-to-skin contact and infant emotional and cognitive development in chronic perinatal distress

ObjectiveWe examined whether the timing of maternal-neonate skin-to-skin contact (SSC) predicts infant emotional and cognitive development in the context of chronic maternal perinatal stress and depressive symptoms. Study designThis secondary analysis included data from a group-based prenatal care clinical trial for 37 pregnant women with low household income. Mothers completed the Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), and the Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale (CES-D) during the third trimester and postpartum. After birth, they reported timing of SSC, and completed the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised Very Short Form (IBQ-R VSF) (M = 51.7 weeks, SD = 4.2). Increased PSS or CES-D score from the third trimester to post-birth indicates chronic maternal perinatal stress or depressive symptoms compared to a decrease or no change. Using hierarchical regression models, we examined if the timing of SSC makes a unique contribution in predicting infant outcomes in the context of chronic maternal perinatal stress and depressive symptoms. ResultsStress-exposed infants had less negative emotionality if SSC is provided immediately after delivery, less than 10 min after birth. The effect of SSC on effortful control in relation to chronic perinatal stress was not statistically significant. The impact of timing of SSC on negative emotionality or effortful control in relation to chronic perinatal depressive symptoms was not statistically significant. ConclusionThis work implies that very early SSC may play a role in later infant emotion regulation process and could act as a protective factor in chronically stressed pregnant women.

Supporting Infant Emotion Regulation Through Attachment-Based Intervention: a Randomized Controlled Trial.

Infant emotion regulation has long-term implications for human development, highlighting the need for preventive interventions that support emotion regulation early in life. Such interventions may be especially important for infants higher in emotional reactivity who need to regulate their emotions more frequently and intensely than infants lower in emotional reactivity. The current randomized trial examined main and moderated effects of an attachment-based intervention on (a) infants' use of mother-oriented and self-soothing emotion regulation strategies and (b) infant emotion dysregulation in 186 low-income, predominantly Latino infants. We tested the brief (10-session) Attachment and Biobehavioral Catch-up (ABC) intervention in the context of home-based federal Early Head Start (EHS) services. Control participants received home-based EHS plus 10 weekly books. Intent-to-treat analyses with covariates revealed main effects of the intervention on infants' use of mother-oriented emotion regulation strategies during a brief (40-s) novel and potentially fear-inducing procedure (d = 0.31). Infant emotional reactivitymoderated intervention impacts on mother-oriented emotion regulation strategies and on infant emotion dysregulation: We found stronger effects of the intervention for infants relatively higher in emotional reactivity. Findings are discussed in terms of the preventive value of attachment-based interventions for supporting early emotion regulation.

Infant emotion regulation and cortisol response during the first 2 years of life: Association with maternal parenting profiles.

This study investigated the prospective associations among emotion expression, behavioral regulation, and cortisol responses in relation to different maternal parenting behaviors during the first 2 years of the infant's life, among a sample of low-income families. Participants included 1,141 mother-child pairs, assessed when the infants were 6, 15, and 24 months old. Maternal parenting behaviors were observed at the 6-month assessment, whereas infant emotion expression, orienting toward mothers, and cortisol responses were measured using a series of emotion-eliciting tasks at all time points. A latent profile analysis revealed four maternal parenting profiles: Detached, Intrusive, Average, and Engaged. Furthermore, a multiple-group path model revealed distinct patterns of emotion development for infants within different maternal parenting groups. Among children with Engaged and Average mothers, orienting behaviors tended to predict less negative emotion and cortisol responses, which was associated with more future orienting behaviors. Conversely, among children with Intrusive and Detached mothers, orienting behaviors tended to predict more negative emotion and cortisol responses, which predicted less future orienting behaviors. Findings of this study enhance current understanding of how different profiles of maternal parenting behaviors impact infant emotional development in poverty, with significant implications for intervention programs targeting early mother-infant interactions.

Sleep Quality, Emotion Regulation and Parenting Stress in Children with Congenital Heart Disease

The aim of this study is to evaluate parental perceptions of parent-infant bedtime interactions and quality of sleep, after hospital discharge, in a group of children diagnosed at birth with congenital heart disease (CHD), as compared with the perceptions of parents in a control group of children who were healthy at birth. More specifically, we evaluated the associations between parental stress, parental perceptions of infant emotion regulation, and infants’ bedtime and sleep routines in each of the two groups. Fifty Italian intact two-parent families (23 boys) of toddlers ageing from 11 to 36 months (M= 23.42, SD=7.10) were recruited. 20 families of CHD children group were recruited from the Department of Cardiology at the Bambino Gesu Children’s Hospital in Rome, Italy; 30 families of the healthy children group were recruited from two childcare units. Parents completed Emotion Regulation Checklist (Shields & Cicchetti, 1997), Parent-Child Sleep Interaction Scale (PSIS; Alfano et al., 2013), Parent-Stress Index-Short Form (PSI-SF; Abidin, 1990) and ad-hoc semi-structured interview on child’s sleep quality. The independent-samples t-test evidenced that parents of healthy children reported significantly higher scores on children's emotion regulation compared with the CHD group Specifically CHD children and healthy children's emotion regulation reported both by mothers (respectively CHD children’s mothers: M= 26.11, SD= 2.9; healthy children’s mothers: M= 28.85, SD= 2.71; t(37) = 3.10, p= .004) and fathers (respectively CHD children’s fathers: M=25.76, SD= 2.79; healthy children’s fathers: M= 27.37, SD= 2.02; t(31)= 2.71, p= .010). Main correlational findings showed in the CHD children’s group that parenting stress total scores were positive related to difficult parent-infant bedtime interactions both for mothers ( r =.58, p < .01) and fathers ( r = .70, p < .01). Results show significant differences in emotion regulation between the two groups. The results of this research will show to the clinicians the aspects of parent-infant bedtime interactions to be addressed in parents of children with CHD.

Video-feedback attachment based intervention aimed at adolescent and young mothers: effectiveness on infant-mother interaction and maternal mind-mindedness

ABSTRACT The study examined the effectiveness of PRERAYMI (Promoting Responsiveness Emotion Regulation and Attachment in Young Mothers and Infants) attachment-based intervention programme aimed at adolescent mother-infant dyads. The intervention used video-feedback and developmental guidance to promote maternal mind-mindedness and sensitivity. 32 adolescent mother-infant dyads in the intervention group were compared to 12 adolescent mother-infant dyads in the control group. Maternal mind-mindedness and maternal/infant styles of interaction were evaluated, at the pre-treatment (infant 3 months) and at the post-treatment (infant 9 months). The results indicated the effectiveness of the intervention in enhancing mind-mindedness, with more mind-related comments and fewer non-attuned mind-related comments, maternal sensitivity and infant cooperative behaviour, and in reducing maternal controlling behaviour, in the intervention group. Changes in mother/infant interaction styles or in mind-mindedness in the control group were not detected. The attachment based medium term intervention helped to improve adolescent mother-infant relationship, which is otherwise potentially at risk.

The Association of Maternal Exposure to Domestic Violence During Childhood With Prenatal Attachment, Maternal-Fetal Heart Rate, and Infant Behavioral Regulation.

Human and animal models suggest that maternal hormonal and physiological adaptations during pregnancy shape maternal brain functioning and behavior crucial for offspring care and survival. Less sensitive maternal behavior, often associated with psychobiological dysregulation and the offspring's behavioral and emotional disorders, has been observed in mothers who have experienced adverse childhood experiences. Strong evidence shows that children who are exposed to domestic violence (DV) are at risk of being abused or becoming abusive in adulthood. Yet little is known about the effect of childhood exposure to DV on the expecting mother, her subsequent caregiving behavior and related effects on her infant. Thus, the present study examined the association of maternal exposure to DV during childhood on prenatal maternal attachment, maternal heart rate reactivity to an infant-crying stimulus and post-natal infant emotional regulation. Thirty-three women with and without exposure to DV during childhood were recruited during the first trimester of pregnancy and followed until 6-month after birth. The Maternal Antenatal Attachment Scale (MAAS) was used to measure prenatal attachment of the mother to her fetus during the second trimester of pregnancy, maternal and fetal heart rate reactivity to an infant-crying stimulus was assessed at the third trimester of pregnancy, and the Infant Behavior Questionnaire-Revised (IBQ-R) was used to assess infant emotional regulation at 6-months. Results showed that pregnant women that were exposed to DV during childhood had a poorer quality of prenatal attachment of mother to fetus, regardless of whether they also experienced DV during adulthood. In addition, maternal exposure to DV during childhood was associated with increased maternal heart rate to infant-crying stimulus and worse infant emotional regulation. These findings highlight the importance of prenatal screening for maternal exposure to DV during childhood as a risk factor for disturbances in the development of maternal attachment, dysfunctional maternal behavior and emotion dysregulation.

Increases in Arousal are More Long‐Lasting than Decreases in Arousal: On Homeostatic Failures During Emotion Regulation in Infancy

In emotion regulation, negative or undesired emotions are downregulated, but there are also opponent processes to emotion regulation—in which undesired emotions are exacerbated dynamically over time by processes that have an amplifying or upregulating impact. Evidence for such processes has been shown in adults, but little previous work has examined whether infants show similar patterns. To examine this, we measured physiological arousal in 57 typical 12 month olds while presenting a 20‐min mixed viewing battery. Fluctuations in autonomic arousal were measured via heart rate, electrodermal activity, and movement. We reasoned that if transitions in autonomic arousal are random (stochastic), then (1) arousal would be normally distributed across the session, and (2) episodes where arousal exceeded a certain threshold above the mean should be as long‐lived as those where arousal exceeded the same threshold below the mean. In fact we found that (1) heart rate and movement (but not electrodermal activity) were positively skewed, and (2) that increases in arousal have a lower extinction probability than decreases in arousal. Our findings may suggest that increases in arousal are self‐sustaining. These patterns are the opposite of the homeostatic mechanisms predicted by naïve approaches to emotion regulation.