The Interactive Role of Music as a Facilitator for Mother–Infant Bonding in Early Motherhood
Year: 2024
Type: article
Abstract: This two-part study explored if mothers’ uses of music in everyday life enhanced and facilitated the quality of mother–infant interactions, and consequently influenced maternal bonding. Study 1 was an exploratory qualitative study, which analysed the patterns of the mothers’ general uses of music and general experiences of motherhood. Study 2 analysed and explored the effects of mothers’ self-selected music on the quality of mother–infant interactions. The second study was based on a two-week trial with a mixed-method design including quantitative and qualitative approaches. It examined how mothers’ self-selected uses of music (maternal singing and listening to music) might influence parental stress, maternal attachment, and the quality of mother–infant interactions over the two-week period. The general findings suggested that mothers’ self-selected uses of music during daily mother–infant interactions can enhance face-to-face interactions. Furthermore, it served as an effective tool for promoting mothers’ sense of well-being. Finally, a cycle of three elements was observed: mothers’ musical responses influenced the infants’ musical responses by the synchrony of behavioral parameters between mother and infant.
Source: Empirical Musicology Review
Author: Verna Vazquez-Diaz de Leon
Institution: University of Sheffield
Language: English
Topic: Music Therapy and Health
Subfield: Social Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W4403284804