Effects of Maternal Depression on Mother-Infant Interaction During FeedingEpisodes and Infant Attachment Classification

摘要

This secondary investigation analyzed previously videotaped feeding episodes ofmothers and their 8 and 13 month old infants. The purpose of this study was to compare the interactive styles of depressed and non depressed mothers and their infants. Women were placed in the appropriate group after being given the Schedule of Affective disorders and Schizophrenia. Additionally, the data from the 13 month feeding episodes were compared to the infants' attachment classification at 13 months. The Ainsworth Strange Situation was used to obtain the infant attachment classifications. During this blinded study, the investigator scored sixty one feeding sessions with the Nursing Child Assessment Feeding Scale (NCAF). The mothers were scored on sensitivity to the infants' cues, response to distress, and fostering cognitive and social emotional development. The infants were scored on their clarity of cues and response to the caregiver's actions. Additionally, contingency scores were calculated for each sub scale. Thirty three of the feeding episodes were of depressed mothers and twenty eight were of non depressed mothers. These mothers were well educated and had an average age of 31 years. Across the NCAF subscales and totals the depressed mothers and their infants scored better than the non depressed dyads in this sample. In the eight month feeding episodes, the depressed mothers scored significantly better than the non depressed mothers in the following subscales: response to distress, cognitive growth fostering, and caregiver total. In the 13 month feeding sessions, only the NCAF total score was significantly higher for the depressed mothers. Analysis of covariance using maternal age, employment, and education showed significant influence in the 8 month feeding episodes.