Infant Mental Health Journal最新文献

There are considerable data documenting the importance of early experiences for healthy human development. Though widely accepted amongst mental health clinicians, developmental researchers and early childhood policymakers, this information is not well known by much of the public. We describe a specialized program designed for established and emerging leaders in Louisiana, United States of America, to help them become better informed to take action to support young children and their families and to facilitate connections across sectors for greater impact. Conducted annually for 6 years, the program drew leaders from a variety of professional sectors working in every region of the state. To evaluate the effectiveness of the program, we conducted semi-structured interviews of program graduates and tabulated responses by thematic analysis. We conclude that translation efforts delivered in this kind of format can lead to gains in knowledge among leaders and action to support early childhood development and well-being.

Social understanding competence develops in sensitive and co-regulating caregiver interactions. Parental reflective functioning (PRF) and parenting stress can affect children's social understanding. This study investigated if children's social understanding was associated with PRF and parenting stress. Parents of 305 Italian children aged from 24 to 72 months (M = 48.2, SD = 13.9; 47.9% girls) completed an online survey. Parents completed the following questionnaire: The Parenting Stress Index—Short Form, the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire, and the Children's Social Understanding Scale. Results showed that children's social understanding was predicted by lower parenting stress, b = .002, p = .017, and parent's interest and curiosity about the child's mental states, b = .07, p = .013. Findings confirm that high levels of parenting stress and low PRF constitute unfavorable conditions for preschoolers’ socio-cognitive development. Thus, the present study can have implication for interventions aimed at improving children's social understanding that should focus on reducing parenting stress and enhancing parental mentalizing.

Black women are more likely to experience traumatic birthing events, more likely to experience perinatal depression, and less likely to receive mental health treatment than women of other racial and ethnic backgrounds, and yet largely overlooked in perinatal mental health research. This pilot study seeks to understand how unacceptable racial disparities and adverse perinatal outcomes influence Black maternal depression and maternal bonding by exploring how prior traumatic loss moderates the relationship between depression and bonding during a subsequent pregnancy among a sample of Black mothers. We use survey data collected from 75 Black mothers as part of the Black Fathers, Equal Partners in Promoting Maternal and Infant Health study, a collaboration between the University of Wisconsin Madison and the African American Breastfeeding Network in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. Study results suggest there is a correlation between maternal depression and bonding; when traumatic loss is included as an interaction variable, it produces a moderating effect, changing the direction of the relationship between bonding and depression. As maternal depression increases, bonding increases when moderated by the variable traumatic loss. This finding has important implications for infant mental health research and practice, disrupting the expectation that depression necessarily poses a risk to maternal–infant bonding.

This blended pilot-empirical and theoretical manuscript documents a reflective journey undertaken by a group of early childhood teacher educators located across different regions of the United States as they examined their course design, materials, and syllabi construction. Grounded in reflective practice, intersectionality, and critical pedagogy, their collaborative endeavor necessitated profound self-examination and recognition of oppressive structures inherent within the field and reproduced throughout course syllabi, thereby perpetuating societal inequities inside and outside the classroom context. Their iterative, evolving effort resembled a reflective consultation group, marked by continuous self-reflection, challenging assumptions, and transforming actions, vividly portrayed in their vignettes. A nonlinear spiral model emerged as a visual representation of the multiple entry points into an ongoing process—highlighting access points that encourage curiosity and interrogation of academic syllabi and course content. The inclusive nature of this inquiry invites faculty members and practitioners to confront racism, ableism, and other systems of domination, amplify marginalized scholarship, and redefine early childhood education-related fields, including the Infant and Early Childhood Mental Health landscape. It also underscores the imperative of sustained introspection and collaborative action in nurturing equity.

Children born to mothers with opioid use disorder (OUD) are at increased risk of maltreatment and out-of-home care (OOHC) placement. This study examines the parent-child interaction quality and home environments of 92 New Zealand children with prenatal opioid exposure (OE) and 106 non-opioid-exposed (NE) children. Experiences for those in maternal care versus OOHC were of particular interest. Biological mothers completed a lifestyle interview during late pregnancy/at birth. At 18 months, parent-child interaction observations, maternal/primary caregiver interviews, and the Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment were completed during a home visit. At age 4.5, children underwent developmental assessment. By 18 months, 20% of OE children were in OOHC. Mothers with OUD who were younger, less cooperative, and had increased polysubstance use during pregnancy were more likely to have lost custody of their child. OE children in their mother's care experienced less positive parenting and lower-quality home environments than NE children. OE children in OOHC had similarly resourced environments to NE children, yet experienced lower levels of parental warmth and responsiveness. Early parenting predicted child cognition, language, and behavior 3 years later, underscoring the critical importance of supporting the parenting and psychosocial needs of OE children's parents/caregivers to improve long-term outcomes.

We compared referrals and connection to care between perinatal patients: 90 receiving OB/GYN care in clinics with integrated behavioral health consultants with infant mental health specialization (IMH-BHC), and 68 receiving traditional care, in the United States. Participants identified as: Native American/Alaskan native, 1.90%; Asian, .63%; African American, 58.23%; Middle Eastern, 6.96%; African National/Caribbean Islander, .63%; Latin-American, 8.86%; and White, 28.48%.

Approximately 80% of families in each group were offered referrals. By design, intervention women received mental health services during pregnancy; 16% of women in either group received postpartum mental health services. Intervention group participants were over three times as likely to engage in IMH home visiting. Treatment families were less likely to follow up with infant referrals, but also had fewer infant emergency room visits.

All intervention participants met with an IMH-BHC prior to recruitment; however, only 20% self-reported encounters with a mental health professional, indicating these interactions may not be identified by the participants as mental health care; therefore, openness to treatment may be increased for women who feel stigma around mental health care.

Given the importance of perinatal mental health, OB/GYN clinics and others serving perinatal patients may consider integrating IMH providers as part of the care team.

Strength-based video-feedback (SB-VF) is an attached base and culturally sensitive video-feedback intervention which promotes maternal well-being and sensitivity through using mentalization technics. The goals of this study were to investigate the feasibility, acceptability, and preliminary effectiveness of internet-delivered SB-VF to mother with post-partum depression during COVID-19 pandemic. A pilot randomized, two arm controlled trial was conducted (trial registration NCT04748731) with depressive symptoms’ women (n = 172) from Chilean public primary health centers, 79 were randomized to either experimental group (on-line SB-VF plus treatment as usual [TAU], n = 41) or control group (TAU, n = 38). Primary outcomes were feasibility measured by eligibility rate, recruitment rate and intervention completion, and acceptability measured by in depth interviews to mothers and therapists. Secondary outcomes were change in depressive symptoms, maternal sensitivity and parental reflective function. The study demonstrated favorable feasibility and acceptability. Despite moderate recruitment rates, the completion rate was notably high in comparison to other online interventions. Participants reported positive experiences, though some faced challenges with internet access and privacy. Maternal sensitivity improved in the intervention group with a small to large effect size. The SB-VF intervention is feasible and preliminarily effective in public health system, with potential for scaling up in similar contexts.

La rétroaction vidéo basée sur la force (SB-VF) est une intervention de rétroaction vidéo de base et culturellement sensible qui favorise le bien-être et la sensibilité maternels par l'utilisation de techniques de mentalisation. Les objectifs de cette étude étaient d’étudier la faisabilité, l'acceptabilité et l'efficacité préliminaire des SB-SF sur Internet pour les mères souffrant de dépression post-partum pendant la pandémie de COVID-19. Un essai pilote randomisé à deux bras contrôlés a été mené (enregistrement d'essai NCT04748731) avec des femmes présentant des symptômes de dépression (n = 172) dans les centres de santé publique primaires chiliens, 79 ont été randomisées dans l'un ou l'autre groupe expérimental (en ligne SB-VF plus traitement comme d'habitude (TAU), n = 41) ou groupe de contrôle (TAU, n = 38). Les principaux résultats étaient la faisabilité mesurée par le taux d'admissibilité, le taux de recrutement et l'achèvement de l'intervention, et l'acceptabilité mesurée par des entrevues en profondeur avec des mères et des thérapeutes. Les critères secondaires étaient le changement des symptômes dépressifs, la sensibilité maternelle et la fonction de réflexion parentale. L’étude a démontré une faisabilité et une acceptabilité favorables. Malgré des taux de recrutement modérés, le taux d'achèvement était particulièrement élevé par rapport à d'autres interventions en ligne. Les participants o

Promoting First Relationships (PFR) is an evidence-based home-visiting program for caregivers and their children from birth to age 5 years. It focuses on caregiver–child interaction, attachment, and relationship quality using video feedback of unedited recordings to elicit reflection and provide positive feedback linked to knowledge development. This paper provides a brief history of PFR and reports on a qualitative study of 222 caregivers’ comments about their PFR experiences following participation in one of four randomized controlled trials conducted over the past decade in the United States (two studies within child welfare setting, one study with Native American families, and one study with Spanish and English-speaking mothers), using a thematic analysis approach to code excerpts from written satisfaction surveys and oral satisfaction interviews. Caregivers’ comments about PFR were positive and were classified into four major thematic areas: a caring, trusting relationship with the provider; enthusiastic program endorsement; improved relationship with their child; and reports of their personal growth and development. The qualitative results align with the key components of the PFR program and confirm aspects of the PFR theory of change model.

Parents serve as the primary informants about infant development, wherefore interparent agreement is essential for facilitating timely identification of children at risk. We studied interparent agreement about infant socioemotional adjustment among 323 mothers and fathers/co-parents of 11-month-old infants living in Denmark using The Ages & Stages Questionnaires^®: Social-Emotional, Second Edition (ASQ^®:SE-2). Agreement was assessed through correlation, mean differences, and agreement on different risk levels. We also examined predictors of agreement including child gender, duration of paternity leave, parental educational level, and parenting stress. Finally, interaction effects between parents’ educational levels and parenting stress were also examined. Results showed moderate correlations and a small mean difference between parents’ total scores, with mothers reporting better infant socioemotional adjustment than fathers. There were also significant differences in terms of placing the child at different risk levels, emphasizing the practical implications of interparent disagreement for screening purposes. Interparent disagreement was predicted by an interaction effect between parents’ levels of parenting stress. Results showed that when fathers/co-parents experience low levels of parenting stress, higher levels of parenting stress among mothers are associated with more disagreement. The study is limited as the sample primarily comprises parents of Danish origin with high educational levels.

The purpose of this article is to share our story of conceptualizing Indigenous early relational wellbeing (ERW), specifically reflecting American Indian and Alaska Native worldviews. Our approach is grounded in Indigenous methodologies and guided by a Community of Learning comprised of Indigenous and allied Tribal early childhood community partners, researchers, practitioners, and federal funders. We describe the steps we took to conceptualize caregiver–child relationships from an Indigenous perspective, center Indigenous values of child development, apply an established Indigenous connectedness framework to early childhood, and co-create a conceptual model of Indigenous ERW to guide future practice and research. This model highlights relational practices as seeds of connectedness and relational wellbeing, and includes the roles of spirituality, culture, and ceremony in nurturing ERW; the manifestations of relational wellbeing across the lifespan; and the interdependence of relational wellbeing within communities and families, across generations, and with the environment. The model also informs the creation of a measure to understand practices that foster relational wellbeing among Indigenous children and families and their relationship to positive development, thus informing research, practice, and policy.