What does this research mean for the field?

Maternal sensitivity across the first 10 years of a child's life is largely independent of maternal, child, and contextual background factors, though it exhibits a nonlinear decline during the first four years. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.INCREMENTAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

What question did this study set out to answer?

To evaluate whether maternal, child, and contextual characteristics predict baseline levels and longitudinal changes in maternal sensitivity across the first ten years of life.

September 10, 2026Attachment & Human DevelopmentOpen Access

Predictors of maternal sensitivity to their children across the first 10 years of life: a prospective population-based study

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To evaluate whether maternal, child, and contextual characteristics predict baseline levels and longitudinal changes in maternal sensitivity across the first ten years of life.
Conducted a prospective population-based cohort study examining mother-child dyads (N=1,085).
Observed maternal sensitivity at child ages 1, 3, 4, and 10 years using the Ainsworth and Erickson scales.
Modeled predictors—including maternal childhood maltreatment, prenatal psychopathology, family functioning, child temperament, and genetic risk—using linear mixed-effects models corrected for multiple testing.
No maternal, child, or contextual characteristics significantly predicted baseline levels or linear changes in maternal sensitivity from ages 1 to 10 after correction for multiple testing.
Post-hoc analyses revealed a nonlinear decline in sensitivity occurring predominantly during the first four years.
Sensitivity analyses spanning ages 1 to 4 identified child sex as the sole significant predictor, with mothers demonstrating higher sensitivity toward daughters.

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Implication

Prospective cohort study observes maternal sensitivity trajectories across childhood, indicating independence from common maternal, child, and contextual risk factors.

Cite This Study

Bravo et al. (2026) studied this question.

synapsesocial.com/papers/6aa27ae958559d80afc73d1a https://doi.org/10.1080/14616734.2026.2723064

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Implication

Prospective cohort study observes maternal sensitivity trajectories across childhood, indicating independence from common maternal, child, and contextual risk factors.

Predictors of maternal sensitivity to their children across the first 10 years of life: a prospective population-based study

Key Points

Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

Predictors of maternal sensitivity to their children across the first 10 years of life: a prospective population-based study

Key Points

Discussion

Implication

Cite This Study

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