Effects of Peruvian mothers’ experiences of violence, resilience, and posttraumatic stress on infant temperament: A longitudinal path model

Worldwide, research has demonstrated that maternal experiences of violence can adversely affect infant development, but moderating and mediating effects on this pathway are less understood, particularly within low- and middle-income countries. Using longitudinal structural equation modeling, the present study analyzed data from 251 Peruvian mothers during the prenatal and postpartum periods. We evaluated the relations between mothers' experiences of childhood violence (CV), prenatal intimate partner violence (IPV), posttraumatic stress symptoms (PTSS), and resilience, and how these factors influenced domains of their infants' temperament (i.e., surgency, negative affectivity, and regulatory capacity). Consistent with hypotheses, analyses revealed that mothers' CV exposure was associated with increased prenatal IPV and PTSS, and prenatal IPV was linked to increased prenatal PTSS and lower resilience. Prenatal PTSS was linked to lower infant regulatory capacity. Maternal prenatal resilience was negatively associated with prenatal PTSS. High postpartum maternal resilience mitigated the adverse effects of maternal CV on infant regulatory capacity. Inconsistent with hypotheses, postpartum PTSS was associated with higher infant regulatory capacity, though sensitivity testing suggested this finding may be spurious. Findings underscore the need for violence prevention and prenatal mental health interventions to reduce maternal PTSS and bolster resilience to support positive infant outcomes in Peru.