Stress, Well-being and family relationships in the transition to parenthood during the COVID-19 pandemic and its influences on infant development (SWAN)

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The SARS-CoV-2 outbreak affects our lives in many ways, forcing us to deal with unforeseeable consequences for daily life. Expectant parents and their unborn children are particularly affected by these challenges: The peripartum period is characterized by major changes in the life of parents, even more during the SARS-CoV-2pandemic (e.g. changes in the health care system, social distancing, lack of social support). Coping with this requires functional stress-and problem-solving strategies as it also affects the developing parent-infant-relationship and child development, particularly if parents have to deal with mental health problems. In the current interdisciplinary proposal, we combine the expertise of four research groups using a longitudinal, multimethodological approach to improve our understanding of the consequences of maternal stress during the peripartum period on infant and child development. Therefore, behavioral, hormonal and clinical psychological correlates of stress will be assessed in a multi-methodological approach using ecological momentary assessment (EMA) and laboratory settings from pregnancy up to 12 months (four assessment points) in a sample of N = 194 expectant mothers and their partners. Child’s socio-emotional and cognitive development will be assessed with different test batteries and paradigms at the age of 9 and 12 months. Special emphasis will be placed on interactional patterns as a mediator between stress and child development, evaluating automatic coding systems for parent-child-interaction (interdisciplinary aspect), as these computer-based systems might proof beneficial in future scientific and therapeutic settings. The aims of the planned study are: (1) To examine the association between stress during pregnancy and the postpartum period during the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic on child development.(2) To evaluate if the SARS-CoV-2 pandemic changed the levels of stress during pregnancy and the postpartum period and the quality of mother-infant relationship over the first year of the child’s life.(3) To compare and evaluate a newly developed automated multimodal behavior analysis software tool with the potential to integrate AI-methods in parent-infant interaction research and different interaction paradigms with two well-established and reliable behavioral analogue coding systems.A better understanding of how stress in pregnancy and the postpartum period affects fetal and infant development is urgently needed. The foundation for socio-emotional competencies and especially stress regulation competencies is laid early in life and are strongly influenced in the context of mother-infant-interaction with long-lasting effects for stress regulation and mental health over the lifespan. Therefore, the planned study will help to better understand the links and to improve healthy development in children.