The parental bonds of adolescent girls and next-generation maternal–infant bonding: findings from the Victorian Intergenerational Health Cohort Study

The purpose of this study was to examine the extent to which adolescent bonding problems with parents predict next-generation maternal–infant bonding problems at 2 and 12 months postpartum. Data were from a two-generation prospective cohort study of 1026 offspring (3 perinatal waves) born to participants of a two-decade (10-wave) study of 1943 adolescents. Dyads in this analysis were 395 mothers (29–36 years) of 606 offspring (305 female). At 16 years, we assessed adolescents’ perceptions of their mother’s and father’s care and control, separately and in combination. Subsequently, when participants were adult mothers of infants 2 and 12 months postpartum, we assessed impaired maternal–infant bonding, infant-directed rejection-anger, and caregiving anxiety. Adolescent–parent bonding problems were strongly predictive of women’s subsequent bonding problems with infants. In particular, impaired postpartum maternal bonding was predicted by adolescent reports of low paternal care (12 months: OR=3.1, 95% CI 1.1–8.6) and high maternal control (12 months: OR=3.7, 95% CI 1.4–9.7). In combination, high maternal control and low paternal control also predicted impaired postpartum bonding (2 months: OR=5.0, 95% CI 1.3–20; 12 months: OR=12, 2.6–56), caregiving anxiety (2 months: OR=4, 95% CI 1.5–11; 12 months: OR=8.8, 95% CI 1.8–43), and rejection/anger (12 months: OR=4.1, 95% CI 1.0–16). Further combinations of care and overprotection that significantly predicted postpartum bonding problems are presented. Our results indicate that adolescent girls who experience high maternal control and low paternal care are at higher risk for subsequent maternal-infant bonding problems. The strength of associations suggests that interventions should begin well before pregnancy.