Child maltreatment during infancy: atypical parent–infant relationships

Infants under one account for up to 13% of child protection registrations in the UK with neglect (55%) and emotional abuse (17%) accounting for nearly two-thirds of these. Infants are highly dependent on their caregivers to enable them to optimize their rapidly developing nervous system, and also to promote their ability for affect regulation via the attachment relationship. As a result, maltreatment that occurs during this period has a disproportionate effect on the child's development.This paper examines the importance of the parent–infant relationship for later infant development, and the impact of ‘atypical’ or anomalous parent–infant interaction occurring during this period. A number of innovative and evidence-based methods of assessing and supporting parents, who are experiencing a range of problems that place them at high risk of poor parent–infant interaction during this period, are examined. The research strongly points to the need for prevention through assessment and intervention that begins in pregnancy and continues throughout the first postnatal year.