MOTHERS WITH DEPRESSIVE SYMPTOMS TOUCHING NEWBORNS

Previous research has demonstrated the positive effects of early conta ct on mother-infant touching behaviours. The present study investigate d whether the type of maternal touching, shortly after birth, is also determined by the mother's mood state. Mothers with depressive symptom s were compared to non-depressive mothers 1 day after delivery on how they touched their newborns following an initial feeding. The results were counter-intuitive in that no differences were found between mothe rs with depressive symptoms and non-depressive mothers in type of mate rnal touching. However, mothers with depressive symptoms talked to the ir infants less often and talked on the phone more often. In addition, mothers with depressive symptoms showed more neutral and negative fac ial expressions and fewer positive and more neutral vocal expressions.