Parenting skills in premature birth: influences of parents’ gender and sensitivity on parental affective state and infant development

Parenting skills can be impaired by a premature birth, with consequences as high frequency of insensitive behaviours and an increased risk of depression and anxiety. Literature has focused on maternal behaviors, but few studies compared mothers and fathers. The aims of the study were to evaluate if the parents’ gender and their level of sensitivity during interaction with infants were significantly associated with depressive and anxious symptoms and with infant interactive behaviours and his cognitive development. 76 preterm infants’ parents (43 mothers; 33 fathers ) were met at 3 months of infant corrected age. According to Child-Adult Relationship Experimental Index (CARE-Index, Crittenden, 2003), 3-minute of parentinfant interaction were videorecorded and parents were categorized as Sensitive or Insensitive. Parents’ affective state was evaluated by Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale (EPDS; Cox et al., 1987) and by State-Trait Anxiety Inventory (STAI; Spielberger, 1983), while the level of infant development was assessed through Griffiths Mental Development Scales(GMDS; Griffiths, 1996). Parental affective state was significantly influenced by the gender, with higher level of depressive and anxiety symptoms in mothers compared to fathers. Insensitive mothers appeared significantly more depressed than sensitive mothers and insensitive fathers. Regarding infants’ development, sensitive parents’ infants showed, compared to insensitive parents’ ones, a higher frequency of cooperative interactive behaviours. Besides, they showed lower levels of compliant and passive interactive patterns, and higher development scores at General and Personal-Social Quotients (GMDS). The study underlines the association between parents’ gender and their affective state, while sensitive interactive behaviours influence infant development. So, both factors must be taken into account in the care of a “preterm family”.