Maternal instinct is delivered in a hormonal package, shows new research establishing the connection between the levels of oxcytocin in a pregnant woman's body and her mothering skills.
A study, led by psychology professor Ruth Feldman at Bar-Ilan University in Israel, is the first to document a direct correlation between oxytocin levels and behaviors such as staying close to infants, touching them andconnecting with them via eye contact. Sixty-two women were sampled for oxcytocin levels and filled out assessments during their first and third trimesters as well as one months post-partum. In the final stage of the study the women were also observed during 15 minutes of interaction with their children and interviewed for 45 minutes.
Statistically the group was comprised of women whose mean age was 27.8 years. The women came from varied educational backgrounds: Fifty percent completed only high school, 24 percent some college and the remaining 26 percent obtained a college degree. Additionally 53 percent worked full-time, 10 percent part-time and 37 percent did not work outside the home. All women in the study were married, in good health and not actively using medication.
Feldman found that women with higher levels of oxytocin in the first trimester engaged in more bonding behaviors after birth. Meanwhile mothers who had high levels of oxytocin throughout the pregnancy were more likely to engage in "exclusive" behaviors such as singing their child a special song or feeding him or her in a special way and to have frequent thoughts about the infant's safety and future.
Previous research has shown oxytocin is secreted during breastfeeding and is involved in mother-child bonding in animals, but this is the first research to show its role in human pregnancy and bonding.
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