Behringer J, Spangler G (2011)
Publication Language: English
Publication Status: Accepted
Publication Type: Journal article, Original article
Publication year: 2011
Original Authors: Spangler Gottfried, Behringer Johanna, Reiner Iris
Publisher: American Psychological Association
Book Volume: 25
Pages Range: 210-219
Journal Issue: 2
DOI: 10.1037/a0023083
Sad and anxious feelings are known to increase in the immediate postpartum period, whereas studies on new mothers' other emotional qualities such as anger are scarce. In laboratory studies, attachment security was found to be associated with effective emotion regulation in challenging situations. This study investigated attachment representations of experiences with parents and of current experiences with the partner as predictors of sad, anxious, and angry feelings across the transition to motherhood. Seventy-seven pregnant women in their third trimester were administered the Adult Attachment Interview and the Current Relationship Interview. The Differential Emotions Scale was given in pregnancy and at the infant's ages of 2 weeks, 2, 4, and 6 months, asking both mothers and fathers about maternal emotional experience. Sadness and anxiety increased 2 weeks postpartum and returned to below baseline over the following months, while anger did not change. Contrary to mothers with an insecure representation of their couple relationship, those with a secure representation reported and displayed increased sadness and anxiety 2 weeks after giving birth, from which they quickly recovered. For mothers secure in their representation of past attachment relationships with parents, an increase of low-level anger emerged 4 months postpartum, which did not occur in insecure participants and receded quickly. It can be concluded that secure representations of current and past attachment relationships help new mothers express and recover from negative emotions. These findings further elucidate the associations between attachment status and emotion regulation while adding a couple perspective. © 2011 American Psychological Association.
APA:
Behringer, J., & Spangler, G. (2011). Maternal representations of past and current attachment relationships, and emotional experience across the transition to motherhood: A longitudinal study. Journal of family psychology, 25(2), 210-219. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0023083
MLA:
Behringer, Johanna, and Gottfried Spangler. "Maternal representations of past and current attachment relationships, and emotional experience across the transition to motherhood: A longitudinal study." Journal of family psychology 25.2 (2011): 210-219.
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