title: Caregiver Soothing Behaviors After Immunization and Infant Attachment: A Longitudinal Analysis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  There were 2 primary objectives to the current study: (1) to relate caregiver behavior trajectories across immunization appointments over the first year of life to subsequent infant attachment and (2) to relate caregiver behavior trajectories within each immunization appointment over the first year of life to subsequent infant attachment.
  
  
  METHODS
  A subsample of 130 caregivers and their infants were recruited from a sample of 760 caregivers who were part of an ongoing longitudinal cohort that videotaped infants' 2-, 4-, 6-, and 12-month immunization appointments. This subsample of caregivers and their infants (n = 130) were invited to participate in an assessment of attachment when infants were between 12 and 18 months of age at the local children's hospital.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Caregiver proximal soothing behaviors were the only caregiver behaviors postimmunization that were related to subsequent infant attachment. Higher frequencies of caregiver proximal soothing at 12 months were related to infants' organized attachment, whereas steeper decreases in proximal soothing across the first year were associated with disorganized infant attachment. In addition, when caregivers engaged in proximal soothing for longer after their 12 month olds' immunizations, these infants were more likely to be secure or organized in their attachment.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  These results provide empirical support for the ecological validity of studying infant attachment in a pediatric pain context. The pediatric "well-baby" visit may provide a potential opportunity to feasibly integrate brief infant mental health screening and intervention.
authors.affiliation: *Department of Psychology, York University, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; †Department of Psychiatry Research, Pediatrics, Hospital for Sick Children, Toronto, Ontario, Canada; ‡Department of Psychiatry, Pediatrics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
authors.forename: Jessica
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hillgrove-Stuart
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Pillai Riddell
authors.forename: David B
authors.initials: DB
authors.lastname: Flora
authors.forename: Saul
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Greenberg
authors.forename: Hartley
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Garfield
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007114:Immunization / Q000009:adverse effects / Q000523:psychology*; D007223:Infant; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D009769:Object Attachment; D010287:Parent-Child Relations; D010290:Parents / Q000523:psychology