Associations Between Prenatal Maternal Stress and Infant Resting Brain Activity: A Preregistered Investigation

Mounting evidence suggests that maternal stress is associated with infants' brain activity, but the role of maternal stress during pregnancy is not yet understood. The present preregistered investigation examines associations between prenatal maternal stress (physiological and perceived) and infant brain activity at 1 month of age. A sample of diverse mother-infant dyads (N = 160) participated (55% female; 39% White). Maternal physiological stress was not associated with infant EEG power. In contrast, higher maternal perceived stress was associated with decreased absolute theta power (β = -0.035, p = 0.042). Higher maternal perceived stress was also associated with decreased absolute (β = -0.016, p = 0.038) and relative (β = -0.047, p = 0.039) alpha power. These findings suggest that maternal perceived stress during pregnancy is associated with infant brain activity shortly after birth.