Prenatal Stress and Infant Temperament

Book Title

Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences

Author(s)

Aya Shigeto, Nova Southeastern UniversityFollow
Mia Knowles
Michael Voltaire, Nova Southeastern UniversityFollow

Document Type

Book Chapter

ISBN

978-3-319-28099-8

Publication Date

2-2019

Description

For many parents-to-be, pregnancy is an exciting and joyful time. However, it can also be a stressful time, whether stress is a preexisting issue that precedes pregnancy or comes from uncertainty and anxiety surrounding childbirth and child-rearing. Past research showed that prenatal stress and anxiety, particularly that of expectant mothers, can have adverse effects on infant temperament. Stressors during pregnancy are not only mothers’ (or parents’) psychological issues but also external factors such as teratogens (e.g., cigarettes, alcohol, drugs) that create a toxic prenatal environment for a developing fetus, which in turn creates long-lasting consequences for the offspring.

Publisher

Springer Nature

Additional Information

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-28099-8_447-1

NSUWorks Citation

Shigeto, A., Knowles, M., Voltaire, M. (2019). Prenatal Stress and Infant Temperament. Encyclopedia of Personality and Individual Differences.
Available at: https://nsuworks.nova.edu/cps_facbooks/574

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