title: Influence of dyadic matching of affect on infant self-regulation.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  Affective behavioural matching during face-to-face interaction fosters the transition from mutual regulation to infant self-regulation. Optimum midrange models of mother-infant interaction hold that moderate degrees of dyadic matching facilitate infant socio-emotional development. The aim of this study was to examine which degree of dyadic matching is most beneficial for infant self-regulation.
  
  
  METHODS
  To evaluate this model, 3 groups of highly, midrange and poorly matched dyads were created from a mixed sample of 68 dyads with healthy and post-partum depressed mothers and their infants (age range = 1-8 months, mean age = 3.9 months). Mother-infant interactions were videotaped in the face-to-face still-face paradigm (FFSF) and micro-analytically coded. Specifically, the relation between affective behavioural matching in FFSF play and infant positive and negative affect in FFSF still face and FFSF reunion was explored.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Contrary to our expectation, we found a monotonous trend for all groups: the more matching in FFSF play, the more positive and less negative affect the infant showed in FFSF still face and FFSF reunion, respectively.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The present findings further illuminate the association between different degrees of dyadic matching in early mother-infant interaction and infant self-regulation. Further research should focus on the integration and replication of findings and conceptual approaches to further evaluate and refine the concept of midrange matching and make it applicable to therapeutic work with mothers and their infants.
authors.affiliation: General Psychiatry, Centre for Psychosocial Medicine, Heidelberg University Hospital, Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Daniela
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Noe
authors.forename: Sabine
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Schluckwerder
authors.forename: Corinna
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Reck
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D000339:Affect; D002657:Child Development; D019052:Depression, Postpartum / Q000523:psychology*; D004644:Emotions; D005149:Facial Expression; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D008425:Maternal Behavior; D009034:Mother-Child Relations / Q000523:psychology*; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology*; D010988:Play and Playthings; D012919:Social Behavior; D012927:Social Control, Informal; D014741:Video Recording