Maternal depression, adult attachment, and children's emotional distress.
BACKGROUND
Our goal was to evaluate the impact of depressed mothers' marital intimacy and attachment security in romantic relationships on children's internalizing and externalizing symptoms.


METHODS
Forty-six clinically depressed mothers rated attachment security, marital intimacy, and symptoms shown by their children aged 8 to 12.


RESULTS
Maternal avoidance of closeness predicted increases in children's internalizing symptoms over a 6-month period.


CONCLUSIONS
Avoidance of closeness in depressed mothers may be implicated in the development of internalizing symptoms in their children, possibly because individuals who are avoidant of closeness are poor caregivers.
Whiffen
Valerie E
VE
School of Psychology, University of Ottawa, Ottawa, Canada. whiff@uottawa.ca
Kerr
Matthew A
MA
Kallos-Lilly
Veronica
V
D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000328:Adult; D002648:Child; D016241:Child of Impaired Parents / Q000523:psychology*; D003866:Depressive Disorder / Q000175:diagnosis / Q000523:psychology*; D003865:Major Depressive Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D019263:Dysthymic Disorder / Q000523:psychology; D004493:Education; D004644:Emotions; D005220:Fathers / Q000523:psychology; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007389:Internal-External Control; D008297:Male; D017533:Marital Status; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D009769:Object Attachment; D012044:Regression Analysis; D012650:Self Disclosure; D018454:Spouses; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors