Mother-infant dyadic reparation and individual differences in vagal tone affect 4-month-old infants' social stress regulation

Livio Provenzi; Erica Casini; Paola de Simone; Gianluigi Reni; Renato Borgatti; Rosario Montirosso

doi:10.1016/j.jecp.2015.07.003

Mother-infant dyadic reparation and individual differences in vagal tone affect 4-month-old infants' social stress regulation

J Exp Child Psychol. 2015 Dec:140:158-70. doi: 10.1016/j.jecp.2015.07.003. Epub 2015 Aug 3.

Authors

Livio Provenzi¹, Erica Casini¹, Paola de Simone¹, Gianluigi Reni², Renato Borgatti³, Rosario Montirosso⁴

Affiliations

¹ 0-3 Center for the Study of Social Emotional Development of at-Risk Infant, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy.
² Bioengineering Laboratory, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy.
³ Department of Child and Adolescent Neurology and Psychiatry, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy.
⁴ 0-3 Center for the Study of Social Emotional Development of at-Risk Infant, Scientific Institute, IRCCS Eugenio Medea, 23842 Bosisio Parini, Lecco, Italy. Electronic address: rosario.montirosso@bp.lnf.it.

PMID: 26247809
DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2015.07.003

Abstract

Infants' social stress regulation (i.e., reactivity and recovery) might be affected by mother-infant dyadic functioning and infants' vagal tone (i.e., respiratory sinus arrhythmia, RSA). This study investigated the role of a specific dyadic functioning feature (i.e., dyadic reparation) and individual differences in vagal tone regulation (i.e., RSA suppression vs. non-suppression) in relation to social stress regulation in 4-month-old infants. A total of 65 mother-infant dyads participated in the face-to-face still-face paradigm. Social stress reactivity and recovery were measured as negative emotionality during Still-Face and Reunion episodes, respectively. RSA was measured during Play, Still-Face, and Reunion episodes. Suppressors had higher dyadic reparation during Play and higher recovery from social stress compared with non-suppressors. Higher reparation during Play was associated with lower reactivity and higher recovery only for suppressors. Findings suggest a joint role of infants' RSA individual differences and dyadic reparation in affecting infants' social stress regulation at 4 months of age.

Keywords: Dyadic reparation; Mother-infant interaction; Respiratory sinus arrhythmia; Social stress; Still-Face paradigm; Vagal tone suppression.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Child Development*
Facial Expression
Female
Humans
Individuality
Infant
Male
Mother-Child Relations*
Play and Playthings
Stress, Psychological / prevention & control*
Vagus Nerve