Abstract
The impact of postnatal depression on mother-infant face-to-face interactions at 4 months by using the Global Rating of Mother-Infant Interaction at Four Months, was examined among the normal women and women with postnatal depression and their infants. The average total score of the "mothers" and "infants" in depressed mothers and infants were decreased compared to these of health control mothers and infants. Compared with controls, depressive mother-child pairs showed a reduced score of responses (e. g. mothers showed significantly less warm/positive, accepting, responsive, non-demanding, non-intrusive behavior to their children, children showed significantly less non-fretful). Infants of the mother with postnatal depression showed less nonfretful. Similar tendency were also seen in the term of "interaction" of depressive mothers and infants (e. g. interaction is less smooth/easy and less mutually satisfying). Disturbances in early mother-infant interactions were found between the Japanese mother with postnatal depression and infant's relationship.
