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Maternal influence on early infant emotional regulation: A study of 3-month infant behavior, cortisol and frontal EEG

Prenatal maternal stress and mood, and early postnatal mother-infant interactions
set the stage for the child’s psychobiological, neurological and social development. While
a large body of research connecting maternal depression to infant EEG asymmetry exists,
the current study sought to add to the sparse literature on maternal anxiety and infant
EEG. Mother-infant dyads were assessed prenatally during the third trimester, soon after
birth, at 6 weeks and 3 months postnatal. Association between maternal depression and
later development of right mid-frontal alpha asymmetry was confirmed, while trends
suggested maternal anxiety may be associated with lateral frontal alpha asymmetry.
Greater maternal sensitivity and anxiety were each associated with lower post-stressor
cortisol in infants with right frontal asymmetry. Greater time spent in mutual gaze was
associated with positive infant affect. Finally, quality mother-infant dynamics encourage positive infant affect and healthy physiological stress regulation even when brain patterns
associated with dysregulation have been established. / Includes bibliography. / Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2017. / FAU Electronic Theses and Dissertations Collection

Identiferoai:union.ndltd.org:fau.edu/oai:fau.digital.flvc.org:fau_39796
ContributorsSloan, Aliza T. (author), Jones, Nancy Aaron (Thesis advisor), Florida Atlantic University (Degree grantor), Charles E. Schmidt College of Science, Department of Psychology
PublisherFlorida Atlantic University
Source SetsFlorida Atlantic University
LanguageEnglish
Detected LanguageEnglish
TypeElectronic Thesis or Dissertation, Text
Format70 p., application/pdf
RightsCopyright © is held by the author, with permission granted to Florida Atlantic University to digitize, archive and distribute this item for non-profit research and educational purposes. Any reuse of this item in excess of fair use or other copyright exemptions requires permission of the copyright holder., http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/

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