The impact of maternal disgust sensitivity from pregnancy until 3 years postpartum on the early development of disgust sensitivity in the child

Introduction Disgust plays a key role in pathogen avoidance. In children, it starts to develop alongside cognition, emotion processing, and social skills around the third year. This study examined whether maternal disgust sensitivity predicts disgust sensitivity in 3-year-old children and whether this relationship is affected by parity and maternal psychological factors. Methods Data were collected from 163 women (60% primiparae) who repeatedly (in the first trimester of pregnancy and then 6 weeks, 1 year, and 3 years postpartum) completed questionnaires on disgust sensitivity, state anxiety, positive and negative affectivity, and perceived stress. At 3 years postpartum, mothers also completed the Child Disgust Scale. Results Path models showed that maternal disgust sensitivity at each time point significantly predicted maternal disgust sensitivity at the next point, and maternal disgust sensitivity 3 years postpartum significantly predicted children's disgust sensitivity. Higher disgust was also reported in children of multiparous mothers. Moreover, perceived stress and negative affectivity in the first trimester positively predicted first-trimester maternal disgust sensitivity. Discussion Our results suggest that children's disgust sensitivity may be shaped by maternal disgust sensitivity and maternal psychological factors in early pregnancy may play a secondary role in this process. Older siblings may also play a role by serving as models.