Vagal reactivity and affective adjustment in infants during interaction challenges
Abstract
Respiratory sinus arrhythmia (RSA) and heart period were evaluated in 5-month-old infants (N= 40) during interaction challenges requiring affective adjustment. The paradigm consisted of four 2-min experimental conditions designed to elicit behavioral and autonomic responses to object-mediated (Picture Attention and Toy Attention) and person-mediated (Still Face and Social Interaction) engagement. The data demonstrated that autonomic state systematically changed during engagement and disengagement with the environment. During the object-mediated challenge, increases in RSA were uniquely related to positive engagement. During the person-mediated challenge, there was a more complex integration of autonomic and behavioral responses characterized by concordant increases and decreases in RSA, heart period, positive engagement, negative affect, and motor activity. When participants were partitioned into two groups, based on their RSA response pattern during the person-mediated challenge, only participants who exhibited a pattern of RSA decrease from Toy Attention to Still Face followed by a rapid recovery during Social Interaction demonstrated regulation of behavioral activity, including concordant recovery from stress. These findings provide additional empirical support for the role of vagal regulation of the heart in the modulation of affective adjustment and engagement behavior.
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The same pattern of RSA change was found with strangers as with parents, suggesting a general mechanism of infants' dependence on a social partner to structure social interaction and to support regulation.
“The same pattern of RSA change was found as with parents, suggesting a general mechanism of infants' dependence on a social partner to structure social interaction and to support regulation.”
From Mother-infant vagal regulation in the face-to-face still-face paradigm is moderated by maternal sensitivity (2009) · cites this paper as Bazhenova et al., 2001
Physiologically during the reunion, infants typically show a return to baseline levels of RSA.
“Physiologically during the reunion, infants typically show a return to baseline levels of RSA (Bazhenova et al., 2001;Ham & Tronick, 2006;Moore & Calkins, 2004;Weinberg & Tronick, 1996).”
From Mother-infant vagal regulation in the face-to-face still-face paradigm is moderated by maternal sensitivity (2009) · cites this paper as Bazhenova et al., 2001
The same pattern of vagal regulation across the FFSFP for mothers and infants was found in this economically diverse sample as has been found in prior research on middle-class samples.
“It is noteworthy that the same pattern of vagal regulation across the FFSFP for mothers and infants was found in this economically diverse sample as has been found in prior research on middle-class samples (e.g., Bazhenova et al., 2001;Ham & Tronick, 2006;Moore & Calkins, 2004;Weinberg & Tronick, 1996).”
From Mother-infant vagal regulation in the face-to-face still-face paradigm is moderated by maternal sensitivity (2009) · cites this paper as Bazhenova et al., 2001
Decreased RSA is likely to reflect increased metabolic demand that is not uniquely associated with negative affect.
“Consistent with the conclusion of Bazhenova et al. (2001), decreased RSA is likely to reflect increased metabolic demand that is not uniquely associated with negative affect.”
From Mother-infant vagal regulation in the face-to-face still-face paradigm is moderated by maternal sensitivity (2009) · cites this paper as Bazhenova et al. (2001)
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- Authors
- Bazhenova, O. V., Plonskaia, O., & Porges, S. W.
- Affiliations
- University of Illinois Chicago (US)
- University of Maryland, College Park (US)
- ORCID
- Porges, Stephen W
- Venue
- Child Development
- Publisher
- Oxford University Press (OUP)
- Published
- 2001-09-01
- Volume
- 72
- Issue
- 5
- Pages
- 1314-1326
- ISSN
- 0009-3920 (ISSN-L)
- 1467-8624
- OpenAlex
- W2161403733
- Cited by
- 195
- References
- 41
- Citations by year
- 2026: 5 · 2025: 7 · 2024: 6 · 2023: 8 · 2022: 7 · 2021: 10 · 2020: 7 · 2019: 10 · 2018: 8 · 2017: 10 · 2016: 6 · 2015: 17 · 2014: 6 · 2013: 9 · 2012: 7
- FWCI
- 2.45
- Type
- journal article
- Language
- en
- Open access
- closed
- Licence
- Locations
- Child Development (publishedVersion)
- PubMed (publishedVersion)
- Funders
- National Institutes of Health (5f05tw004922-02)
- U.S. Public Health Service (MCJ-240622)
- National Institute of Mental Health (MH 60625, R01MH060625)
- Fogarty International Center (F05-TW04922)
- Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development (HD 22628, R01HD022628)
- Topics
- Health Sciences › Medicine › Cardiology and Cardiovascular Medicine › Heart Rate Variability and Autonomic Control
- Social Sciences › Psychology › Clinical Psychology › Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development
- Health Sciences › Health Professions › Pharmacy › Infant Health and Development
- Keywords
- vagal reactivity, respiratory sinus arrhythmia, heart period, social engagement, still-face paradigm, autonomic regulation, stress recovery, infant motor activity, negative affect
- MeSH terms
- Affect, Arrhythmia, Sinus, Autonomic Nervous System, Child Development, Female, Heart, Heart Rate, Humans, Infant, Male, Models, Biological, Motor Activity, Respiration, Social Adjustment, Vagus Nerve
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