Maternal-fetal attachment and resting frontal alpha asymmetry: the mediating role of depression

Maternal-fetal attachment (Mfa) represents an important, though understudied, construct in reproductive and infant psychology. for example, children of mothers with higher levels of Mfa tend to have better motor functioning, problem solving skills, and social communication skills (alhusen et al., 2013). We were particularly interested in whether a well-established neurophysiological marker of affective style, namely resting frontal alpha asymmetry (faa), may be associated with Mfa, given recent research suggests that maternal emotional states may shape neural responses to infant affective cues measured during pregnancy (rutherford et al., 2016; 2017).