This literature review focuses on factors found to be associated with individual differences in infant night waking. Infant night waking that requires parent intervention to assist the infant to return to sleep is of special concern to parents because of the sleep deprivation and fragmentation that they experience. Both intrinsic and extrinsic…

Examined the effects of maternal employment and separation anxiety on maternal interactive behavior and infant attachment in 73 mother-infant pairs. Employed mothers who reported high levels of separation anxiety were more likely than low-anxiety mothers to exhibit intrusive behaviors. Although employment was not directly related to attachment,…

Two studies found that (1) women who preferred employment but remained at home reported higher levels of depressive symptomatology than the other women studied; and (2) homemakers who preferred employment held conflicting sets of beliefs about the maternal role, separation from their infants, careers, and employment. (RH)

Examined the feelings of mothers when temporarily leaving their infants--who were perceived to cry excessively--to other caretakers. Found through interviews that the mothers were anxious when separated from the infant, had an intensive perception of the infant's crying, and had difficulty sharing responsibility for the infant. (EV)

Claims that children of parents in the military services have adapted to parental separation as parents balance the demands of family and job responsibility. Compares the psychosocial functioning of children who have experienced extended maternal separation with that exhibited by children who have separated from their fathers. Addresses…

Maternal separation anxiety influences maternal behavior, attitudes about employment, and employment decisions made by mothers. This study examined the relationship between maternal separation anxiety and the number of hours a child was in substitute care. The sample consisted of 44 mothers and their children who ranged in age from 12 to 41 months…

Examined the association between maternal depression, maternal separation anxiety, social support, and maternal involvement in the day-care center among 54 upper-income mothers and their infants. Found that higher levels of maternal involvement in day care were associated with lower levels of maternal depression. (MDM)

Investigated the relationships between parental separation anxiety and adolescent identity development in a longitudinal study of first-year college students and seniors. Found that mothers' need to provide security influenced their adolescents' identity achievement, while father's anxiety about distancing had negative and positive consequences…

In this study, the authors compared 90 pairs of mothers and fathers with respect to aspects of negative emotionality experienced in the early parenting role. Mothers and fathers of 90 healthy 3-month-old infants completed questionnaires pertaining to parenting stress and separation anxiety. Mothers reported significantly higher levels of negative…

Examined potential differences in psychological correlates between mothers with high and low levels of separation anxiety when their children were 8 months, 3.5 years, and 6 years of age. Mothers with extremely high levels of anxiety about short-term separation from their six year olds tended to have higher levels of depressive symptomatology.…

This study addressed the argument that early child care constitutes a risk to children's social adaptation, and that for high-risk samples this effect depends on the security of the infant-mother attachment relationship. A longitudinal investigation of 135 first-born children in a low-risk sample was conducted to discern the contribution of child…