Perinatal Depression and Anxiety Symptoms, Parental Bonding and Dyadic Sensitivity in Mother–Baby Interactions at Three Months Post-Partum

The quality of the early parent-infant relationship is crucial for the child's optimal development, and parental sensitivity plays a key role in early interactions. The purpose of the study was to evaluate the influence of maternal perinatal depression and anxiety symptoms on dyadic sensitivity at three months post-partum, also considering a large set of maternal and infant variables. At the third trimester of pregnancy (T1) and at three months postpartum (T2), 43 primiparous women filled in a set of questionnaires evaluating symptoms of depression (CES-D) or anxiety (STAI), the woman's parental bonding experiences (PBI), alexithymia (TAS-20), maternal attachment to the baby (PAI, MPAS) and the perceived social support (MSPSS). At T2 mothers also completed a questionnaire on infant temperament and took part in the CARE-Index videotaped procedure. Dyadic sensitivity was predicted by higher maternal trait anxiety scores in pregnancy. In addition, the mother's experience of being cared for by her father in childhood was predictive of her infant's lower compulsivity, while paternal overprotection predicted higher unresponsiveness. The results highlight the influence of perinatal maternal psychological well-being and maternal childhood experiences on the quality of the dyadic relationship. The results may be useful to foster mother-child adjustment during the perinatal period

Prenatal attachment and perinatal depression: A systematic review

Pregnancy is a period of complex bio-psychological changes, during which the development of an attachment bond to the fetus takes on a central role. Depressive symptoms are common during this period. Both symptoms of depression and low levels of prenatal attachment are related to negative outcomes in caregivers and infants. Following the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) statement, this systematic review analyzes and systematizes 41 studies concerning the association between prenatal attachment and perinatal depression. The majority of the studies reported a significant association between the two. Specifically, prenatal depressive symptoms were found to be negatively associated with prenatal attachment. Furthermore, lower levels of prenatal attachment were related to higher postnatal depressive symptoms, although fewer studies assessed this association. While these results were found across different populations, conflicting findings emerged, suggesting they should be interpreted with caution, particularly in male samples and in non-normative pregnancies (e.g., highrisk pregnancies, medically assisted pregnancies, and pregnancies with previous perinatal losses). These results are clinically important for the perinatal screening process and for implementing preventive and treatment programs. However, future studies are needed to further confirm and generalize these results

The Relationship Between Sexism, Affective States, and Attitudes Toward Homosexuality in a Sample of Heterosexual Italian People

Background: Research within the Italian context on the determinants of attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women is relatively poor compared with the large number of investigations carried out in other countries. Our goal is to examine Italians’ attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women, as well as the factors that encourage these perspectives. We are interested in whether socio-demographic characteristics such as gender, age, education level, and religiosity predict negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women. Another goal is to examine affectivity and sexism’s role in predicting attitudes toward homosexuality. Methods: The study was conducted online with 1328 Italian heterosexual participants (women, 67.3%; men, 32.7%) ranging in age from 18 to 78 (women: M = 23.9, SD = 5.2; men: M = 26, SD = 8.9). Results: The results show that men, older people, more religious people, sexists, and those who had higher negative affectivity were more predisposed to having negative attitudes toward gay men and lesbian women. Conclusions: The results are discussed, while considering their practical implications for prevention and education programs focused on reducing discrimination against lesbian and gay people in Italian society today

Pre-natal Attachment and Parent-To-Infant Attachment: A Systematic Review

During the perinatal period, the establishment of the attachment relationship with the fetus and subsequently with the real child is crucial for the parents' and the child's well-being. Coherently with the assumption that the attachment relationship starts to develop during pregnancy, this systematic review aims to analyze and systematize studies focused on the association between pre-natal attachment and parent-to-infant attachment, in order to clarify the emerging results and provide useful information for clinical purposes. Nineteen studies were included. Sixteen researches identified a positive relationship between pre-natal attachment and parent-to-infant attachment, and three articles highlighted a negative association between antenatal attachment and post-partum bonding disorders. These results were found both in women and men, in normative and at-risk pregnancies, adopting different assessment approaches (i.e., self-report measures, observations, and projective measures). However, only small or moderate associations were found. Future studies are needed to further confirm these findings across different populations (e.g., male samples, non-normative samples or samples in disadvantaged conditions) and with different methodological approaches (e.g., observational measures). Moreover, studies would be needed in order to clarify mechanisms through which pre-natal attachment influences parent-to-infant attachment, as well as protective and risk factors which intervene between these two variables