Abstract

PEREIRA, Sara; COSTA, Raquel; TOJAL, Catarina  and  TENDAIS, Iva. Aspetos psicofisiológicos da interação mãe/pai-bebé. Aná. Psicológica [online]. 2017, vol.35, n.4, pp.453-467. ISSN 0870-8231.  https://doi.org/10.14417/ap.1271.

Although the importance of the quality of behaviors in the mother-infant and father-infant interaction is recognized, knowledge on the physiological aspects that underlie it is still scarce. Objective: to describe the physiological response of mothers and fathers during interaction with their infants. For this purpose, heart rate, respiratory sinus arrhythmia and skin conductance of 24 mothers and 13 fathers were recorded during interaction with the infant according to the Face-to-Face Still-Face (FFSF) protocol. Results: There was an increase in heart rate during the face-to-face episode, a decrease in the still-face episode and a new increase in the recovery episode. There is a decrease in respiratory sinus arrhythmia during the face-to-face episode, an increase in the still-face episode and a further decrease in the recovery episode. Regarding skin conductance, the responses of mothers and fathers follow different patterns: in women there is an increase during the face-to-face episode, a decrease in the still-face episode and a new increase in the recovery episode while in men there is a consistent increase in skin conductance throughout the FFSF procedure. Conclusion: This study contributes to the understanding of the physiological responses of mothers and fathers during the interaction with their infants.

Keywords : Mother-infant interaction; Father-infant interaction; Physiological response; Face-to-face still-face; Respiratory sinus arrhythmia; Heart rate; Skin conductance.

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