Prenatal bonding and early emotion regulation in infancy and toddlerhood (0–36 months): a systematic review of developmental associations, psychological mediators, and contextual moderators

TL;DR

This review explores how prenatal bonding, especially from mothers, influences early emotion regulation in infants and toddlers up to 36 months old.

Contribution

The study provides a systematic review of developmental associations between prenatal bonding and early emotion regulation, highlighting psychological mediators and contextual moderators.

Findings

Higher maternal prenatal bonding is linked to lower negative affectivity and greater soothability in infants and toddlers.

Maternal mental health and sociodemographic factors consistently moderate the effects of prenatal bonding on emotion regulation.

Preliminary evidence suggests potential additive contributions from paternal prenatal bonding to child emotion regulation.

Abstract

Prenatal bonding is increasingly recognized as a foundational process for postnatal development, particularly in shaping infants’ emerging emotion regulation. This review aimed to synthesize empirical evidence on the association between prenatal bonding and early emotion regulation capacities in infancy and toddlerhood (0–36 months).

Following PRISMA 2020 guidelines, PubMed, EBSCOhost, and Scopus were systematically searched for English-language studies published between 2015 and 2025. Eligible studies assessed prenatal bonding—primarily maternal, with limited paternal inclusion—and postnatal emotion regulation outcomes in children aged 0–36 months. Methodological quality was appraised narratively due to substantial heterogeneity in designs, measures, and outcomes; a structured narrative synthesis was therefore undertaken.

Fourteen studies met inclusion criteria; eleven constituted the primary synthesis set (prenatal measures with outcomes ≤ 36 months), and three were considered contextually. Across studies, higher-quality prenatal bonding—particularly in the maternal domain—was associated with more favourable early regulatory indicators, notably lower negative affectivity and greater soothability. Evidence for attentional regulation and broader socioemotional adjustment was promising but more variable. Maternal mental health and sociodemographic factors emerged as consistent moderators. Although only a minority of studies included fathers, preliminary findings suggest possible additive paternal contributions.

Findings underscore the developmental significance of prenatal bonding and the need for theory-driven, multimethod longitudinal research using developmentally sensitive measures and more diverse samples, including paternal cohorts.

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