Influence of early mother-infant contact on dyadic behaviour during the first month of life

Abstract

An experimental group of 30 newborn infants had contact with their mothers for half an hour in the delivery room, and a control group followed the usual hospital routine, being shown briefly to their mothers before being taken to the nursery. In both groups permanent rooming-in began from the sixth hour of life. The infants' behaviour was assessed one, three and 28 days after birth by means of the Brazelton scale, and the behaviour of the dyad was observed during feeding on the third and 28th day. Infants in the experimental group interacted significantly better on days three and 28, and their mothers had higher scores for affectionate behaviour on the 28th day.