title: Mothers' alexithymia, depression and anxiety levels and their association with the quality of mother-infant relationship: a preliminary study.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To evaluate the relationship between mothers and their developmentally normal infants in terms of maternal alexithymia, depression and anxiety, and marital satisfaction.
  
  
  METHODS
  Fifty children between 18 and 48 months of age, and their mothers, were referred consecutively to the Infant Mental Health Unit of Ankara University School of Medicine, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry. The sociodemographic features of the families and the depressive symptoms, anxiety, marital satisfaction and alexithymia levels of the mothers were assessed. The relationships between children in normal developmental stages and their mothers were evaluated and rated using a structured clinical procedure.
  
  
  RESULTS
  There was a negative correlation between the mothers' alexithymia scores and the quality of the mother-infant relationship (p < 0.05). Mothers with high alexithymia showed higher depression and lower relationship qualities than mothers with low alexithymia, according to the correlation analysis. When depression and anxiety were controlled, high alexithymia levels were predictive of a low, impaired mother-infant relationship.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Since alexithymia is a trait-like variable which has a negative correlation with impairment in a mother-infant relationship, it must be investigated in the assessment of mothers' interactions with their babies.
authors.affiliation: Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Ufuk University Medical School , Ankara , Turkey.
authors.forename: Esra
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Yürümez
authors.forename: Ömer Faruk
authors.initials: ÖF
authors.lastname: Akça
authors.forename: Çağatay
authors.initials: Ç
authors.lastname: Uğur
authors.forename: Runa Idil
authors.initials: RI
authors.lastname: Uslu
authors.forename: Birim Günay
authors.initials: BG
authors.lastname: Kılıç
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000342:Affective Symptoms / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D001007:Anxiety / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003863:Depression / Q000150:complications / Q000523:psychology*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008393:Marriage / Q000523:psychology; D008875:Middle Aged; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D010549:Personal Satisfaction; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: Alexithymia; mother-child relationship; mother-infant interaction; mothers’ depression and anxiety