Infancy and parent–infant research. A randomized controlled trial of mother–infant psychoanalytic treatment: I. Outcomes on self-report questionnaires and external ratings

Infancy and parent–infant research. A randomized controlled trial of mother–infant psychoanalytic treatment: I. Outcomes on self-report questionnaires and external ratings

Björn Salomonsson & Rolf Sandell

Infant Mental Health Journal, Wiley Online, 2011, Volume 32 (2): 207–31

Mother–infant relationship disturbances occur in three domains: maternal distress, infant functional problems and relationship difficulties. They constitute common clinical problems. In Sweden, they are usually handled by nurses as part of public Child Health Centre care. Severe cases are referred to child psychiatry services. This randomized controlled trial compared two groups of mother–

infant dyads in a Stockholm sample. One received only Child Health Centre care (the ‘CHCC’ group) while the other received mother–infant psychoanalytic treatment plus CHCC (the ‘MIP’ group). Eighty dyads of mothers and infants under 1½ years of age where the mothers had serious concerns about themselves in their role as mothers, their infants’ well-being, or the mother–baby relationship were randomly selected for either the MIP or the CHCC group. The primary outcomes were mother-reported depression, mother-reported infant functional problems and interviewer-based relationship assessments, all at 6 months after joining the project. Secondary outcomes were mother-reported stress and general psychic distress, externally rated video-recorded interactions and the consumption of healthcare at the CHC, again all after 6 months. Intent-to-treat analyses of Treatment × Time effects significantly favoured MIP treatment for maternal depression, mother–infant relationships, and maternal sensitivity.