Mother- and father-infant interactions at 3 months of corrected age: The effect of severity of preterm birth

- Level of parental sensitivity and infant cooperation did not differ between mother- and father-preterm infant interaction.
- During interactions, mothers showed high level of control, while fathers appeared very unresponsive.
- Severity of prematurity based on birth weight did not significantly influence interactive pattern.

Early interactions of 92 preterm infants with their mothers (n = 54) and fathers (n = 38) were explored at 3 months using CARE-Index. Results showed differences in interactions based on parent's gender, with higher control in mothers and unresponsiveness in fathers, while no effect of severity of birth weight emerged.