The role of prenatal depression and infant negative emotionality on maternal mind-mindedness

Mind-mindedness (MM) promotes children’s socio-cognitive skills and attachment, yet relatively less is known about the earliest precursors of MM. This longitudinal study examined the role of prenatal depression, alone and in combination with infant negative emotionality on MM. Turkish mothers completed depression questionnaires in pregnancy and at 9 months postnatally. MM and infant negative emotionality were coded from observational tasks at infant age 12-13 months. A total of 50 dyads (56% boys) participated at all time points. A statistically significant interaction was detected such that prenatal depression predicted less appropriate MM when infants were low in negative emotionality. Yet, this relation was non-significant for distress-prone infants. Findings suggest that MM has its origins in antenatal experiences, moderated by child characteristics, with implications for the relational nature of MM. Findings also have significance for early childhood professionals to facilitate MM among mothers with prenatal depression.