‘Baby’s bond with mom shapes love life later’
New moms, please note — your relationship with your beloved baby in the first one-and-a-half years can actually help shape the toddler’s behaviour later in their love life, says a new study.
Researchers at the University of Minnesota have found those children who secure bond with their mothers during the first 18 months of life are likely to have more successful relationships later on in life.
While a mistreated infant becomes a defensive arguer later in life, the baby whose mother was attentive and also supportive can work through problems with their partner, according to the researchers. This is because one’s ability to trust, love and work through arguments is defined early on in childhood, they said.
“It is the first real attachment that people have with another person and because of that it serves as a template for what will happen later in their life span. When children are young and their brains are developing they learn a great deal rapidly so they’re more likely to take in lot of information.
“If you have a secure bond with your mother you are more likely to have a well emotionally regulated and satisfied relationship later on,” Professor Jeffry Simpson, who led the study, was quoted by the Daily Mail as saying.
He added: “Your interpersonal experiences with your mother during the first 12 to 18 months of life predict your behaviour in romantic relationships 20 years later. What happens to you as a baby affects the adult you become.”
The researchers have based their findings on an analysis of 75 children of low-income mothers whom they assessed from birth into their early 30s, including their close friends and romantic partners.
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