| Title: |
Inter-Relations between Mind-Mindedness, Maternal Communicative Style in the Context of Attachment Distress, and Infant-Mother Attachment Security |
| Language: |
English |
| Authors: |
Elisabetta Lombardi (ORCID 0000-0001-8930-8770); Cinzia Di Dio; Elizabeth Meins; Chiara Giovanelli; Franca Crippa; Daniela Traficante; Antonella Marchetti; Lucia Leonilde Carli |
| Source: |
International Journal of Behavioral Development. 2025 49(3):288-298. |
| Availability: |
SAGE Publications. 2455 Teller Road, Thousand Oaks, CA 91320. Tel: 800-818-7243; Tel: 805-499-9774; Fax: 800-583-2665; e-mail: journals@sagepub.com; Web site: https://sagepub.com |
| Peer Reviewed: |
Y |
| Page Count: |
11 |
| Publication Date: |
2025 |
| Document Type: |
Journal Articles; Reports - Research |
| Descriptors: |
Metacognition; Mothers; Attachment Behavior; Infants; Parent Child Relationship; Foreign Countries; Individual Characteristics; Interpersonal Communication; Stress Variables; Correlation |
| Geographic Terms: |
Italy (Milan) |
| DOI: |
10.1177/01650254241308489 |
| ISSN: |
0165-0254; 1464-0651 |
| Abstract: |
The quality of the maternal communication plays a critical role in the development of secure infant-caregiver attachment. This relationship may be mediated by the caregivers' capacity to recognize and appropriately respond to the child's mental states (i.e., mind-mindedness). To specifically explore the role of mind-mindedness in the relationship between maternal communicative style and attachment, associations between maternal communicative style and attachment patterns were assessed in 88 infant-mother dyads using mind-mindedness as a mediator. Communicative style and attachment patterns were evaluated during the reunion episodes in the strange situation procedure. Communicative style was evaluated using the Coding System for the analysis of the Caregivers' Communication Style scale, which produced three distinct communicative patterns: Misleading Communication, Denial Communication, and Affective Support. Attachment was classified by standard procedure as insecure-avoidant, secure, and insecure-ambivalent. Mind-mindedness, evaluated during free play, assessed mothers' use of appropriate versus non-attuned mind-related comments. The results support a significant mediation of appropriate mind-minded comments in the relationship between affective supportive communicative style and both secure and insecure-avoidant attachment patterns, strengthening and mitigating direct relationships, respectively. No mediating role of mind-mindedness was found for insecure-ambivalent attachment. These findings help clarify the role of mind-mindedness in relation to communicative style and attachment and outline a certain behavioral consistency in mothers' responses to their child across different observational contexts. |
| Abstractor: |
As Provided |
| Entry Date: |
2025 |
| Accession Number: |
EJ1470997 |
| Database: |
ERIC |