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Building Early Social and Emotional Relationships with Infants and Toddlers pp 27–57Cite as

Laying the Groundwork for Social and Emotional Development: Prenatal Attachment, Childbirth Experiences, and Neonatal Attachment

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Abstract

Attachment to caregivers plays a critical role in the social and emotional development of children. The foundation of the caregiver-infant relationship begins before birth and continues to develop after birth. There are both threats to prenatal and neonatal attachment and factors that promote early bonding and social and emotional development during this time. This chapter focuses on the early relationships between infants and caregivers and is divided into three sections reflecting distinct periods (prenatal, childbirth, and postnatal). Descriptions of social and emotional development and attachment, contextual influences, and assessments are highlighted in each section.

This research was supported in part by grant P20GM1109097 funded by NIGMS (Jennifer Hays-Grudo, PI). The authors wish to thank Carolyn Henry for her helpful comments on an earlier draft. This content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessary represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health. For more information, contact: Karina M. Shreffler, Department of Human Development and Family Science, Oklahoma State University, 700 N. Greenwood Ave., Tulsa, OK, 74106. Phone: 918-594-8389. Email: karina.shreffler@okstate.edu.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Human Development and Family Science, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA

    Tiffany N. Spierling, Stacy Tiemeyer & Karina M. Shreffler

  2. Department of Psychology, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA

    Lucia Ciciolla

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    Amanda Sheffield Morris

  2. Department of Human Development and Family Science, Oklahoma State University, Stillwater, OK, USA

    Amy C. Williamson

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Spierling, T.N., Ciciolla, L., Tiemeyer, S., Shreffler, K.M. (2018). Laying the Groundwork for Social and Emotional Development: Prenatal Attachment, Childbirth Experiences, and Neonatal Attachment. In: Morris, A., Williamson, A. (eds) Building Early Social and Emotional Relationships with Infants and Toddlers. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-03110-7_2

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