A prospective, longitudinal and observational study, using a non-clinical population of mother-child dyads was carried out to evaluate the comparable contribution of maternal psychopathology, cognitions, infant temperament and interactional behaviour to infant feeding difficulties throughout the first year of life. This thesis also explores the specificity of maternal insensitivity associated with feeding difficulties, and evaluates the longitudinal stability of maternal cognitions and psychopathology from pregnancy to the first postnatal year. Maternal unhealthy core beliefs, mediated by low maternal self-esteem, in addition to infant temperament, were paramount in the prediction and maintenance of infant feeding problems. Even during pregnancy, certain core beliefs predicted the development of later feeding problems. 1n addition, difficult infant behaviour, and insensitive maternal behaviour were associated with feeding difficulties. Moreover, between pregnancy and the first six postnatal months maternal anxiety decreased, and between 6 and 12 months postpartum disordered eating attitudes decreased. Conversely, negative self-sacrifice core beliefs increased between pregnancy and the first six postnatal months. This thesis demonstrates many interesting and novel findings but primarily, through the utilisation of longitudinal data; it exemplifies the important causal contribution that maternal unhealthy core beliefs, mediated by maternal self-esteem, have in the development of early infant feeding problems.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:422728 |
| Date | January 2005 |
| Creators | Farrow, Claire Victoria |
| Publisher | University of Birmingham |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
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