Stress, depression, and the mother-infant relationship across the first year

描述（由申请人提供）：本申请旨在探讨慢性日常压力在产后抑郁过程中的作用，对婴儿认知和情绪发展的负面影响，以及母婴关系对婴儿发展的中介作用。慢性压力与抑郁症的发病和病程有关，多达19%的妇女（49%的墨西哥裔美国妇女）患有产后抑郁症，使其成为一个重大的公共卫生问题。在婴儿早期暴露于母亲抑郁对几个发育过程有显著的长期影响。有大量的文献详细介绍了产后抑郁症对婴儿适应的负面影响，包括认知功能和情绪调节技能的发展缺陷。这些发展能力可能依赖于母婴关系的质量，而这种关系介导了母亲抑郁的影响。提出的研究计划将测试几个模型，以解决日常压力的作用，抑郁对母婴关系和婴儿能力的影响，以及母婴关系质量对婴儿发育的中介作用。数据将来自一项更大规模的纵向研究，该研究旨在探索婴儿与其抑郁的墨西哥裔美国母亲之间的协同调节过程。测量包括母亲自我报告的压力、抑郁和婴儿情绪调节；母婴互动观察；以及产后第一年婴儿认知和情感发展的评估。这些数据使我们有机会在高风险人群中纵向探索与产后抑郁症和婴儿发育有关的重要公共卫生问题。

DESCRIPTION (provided by applicant): The current application seeks to investigate the role of chronic daily stress in the course of postpartum depression, the negative impact on infant cognitive and emotional development, and the mediating role of the mother-infant relationship on infant development. Chronic stress is linked to the onset and course of depression, and as many as 19% of women (49% of Mexican-American women) suffer from postpartum depression, making it a significant public health concern. Exposure to maternal depression during early infancy has significant long-term effects on several developmental processes. There is a substantial literature that details the negative effects of postpartum depression on infant adaptation, including deficits in both cognitive functioning and the development of emotion regulation skills. It is possible that these developmental competencies may be dependent upon mother-infant relationship quality, and that this relationship mediates the effects of maternal depression. The proposed research plan will test several models to address the role of daily stress, the impact of depression on the mother-infant relationship and infant competencies, and the mediational role of the quality of the mother-infant relationship on infant development. Data will be drawn from a larger longitudinal study that explores coregulatory processes between infants and their depressed, Mexican-American mothers. Measurements include maternal self-reports of stress, depression, and infant emotional regulation; observations of mother-infant interactions; and assessment of infant cognitive and emotional development across the first postpartum year. These data allow the opportunity to longitudinally explore important public health issues related to postpartum depression and infant development in a high risk population.