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High quality social environment buffers infants’ cognitive development from poor maternal mental health: Evidence from a study in Bhutan
Author(s) -
Juvrud Joshua,
Haas Sara A.,
Lindskog Marcus,
Astor Kim,
Namgyel Sangay C.,
Wangmo Tshering,
Dorjee Sithar,
Tshering Kinzang P.,
Gredebäck Gustaf
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
developmental science
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.801
H-Index - 127
eISSN - 1467-7687
pISSN - 1363-755X
DOI - 10.1111/desc.13203
Subject(s) - mental health , psychology , cognition , psychological intervention , developmental psychology , context (archaeology) , cognitive development , child development , perception , social environment , clinical psychology , psychiatry , paleontology , neuroscience , political science , law , biology
Poor maternal mental health negatively impacts cognitive development from infancy to childhood, affecting both behavior and brain architecture. In a non‐western context (Thimphu, Bhutan), we demonstrate that culturally‐moderated factors such as family, community social support, and enrichment may buffer and scaffold the development of infant cognition when maternal mental health is poor. We used eye‐tracking to measure early building blocks of cognition: attention regulation and social perception, in 9‐month‐old Bhutanese infants ( N = 121). The cognitive development of Bhutanese infants in richer social environments was buffered from poor maternal mental health, while for infants in environments with lower rates of protective social environment factors, worse maternal mental health significantly predicted greater costs for infant attention, a fundamental building block cognition. International policies and interventions geared to improve maternal mental health and child health outcomes should incorporate each regions’ unique family, cultural, and community support structures.