Maternal separation anxiety before and after the return to employment during the first year postpartum: Maternal, infant, and social-contextual influences

This study examined the maternal, infant, and social-contextual factors related to maternal separation anxiety before (at 1 month postpartum) and after the return to employment (at 6 months postpartum and at 15 months follow-up), during the first year postpartum. The study also explored the role of social-contextual factors (husband/partner support, child care, and social support) as moderators between difficult infant temperament and maternal separation anxiety.;Findings indicated that maternal separation anxiety significantly decreased during the first year postpartum. In addition, the predictors for each assessment period differed across time. Hierarchical regression analyses indicated that at 1 month, mothers' attitudes towards the risks of employment and social support significantly contributed to maternal separation anxiety. At 6 months, mothers' attitudes and difficult infant temperament significantly contributed to maternal separation anxiety. On the other hand, at 15 months, mothers' attitudes, difficult infant temperament, and husband support significantly contributed to maternal separation anxiety. In general, maternal separation anxiety seemed to be mostly related to factors within the mother-infant dyad with social-contextual factors playing a minimal role across the first year postpartum. Contrary to expectations, social-contextual factors did not appear to buffer the relation between difficult infant temperament and maternal separation anxiety.;The study is based on a subsample of 195 mothers selected from the database of 1,364 participating families in the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Study of Early Child Care (NICHD). The subsample included all mothers in dual-earner families who had returned to full-time work within the first six months postpartum and who had infants in full-time child care at 6 and 15 months. Mothers completed interviews and questionnaires pertaining to: demographics, difficult infant temperament, risks of maternal employment, husband/partner support regarding maternal employment decision, child care, and social support. Mothers also reported their feelings toward separating from their infants before and after the return to work during the first year postpartum using Subscale 1 (General Maternal Separation Anxiety) of the Maternal Separation Anxiety Scale by Hock, McBride, & Gnezda (1989).