Antecedents of Maternal Separation Anxiety

Antecedents of maternal separation anxiety were examined in 83 Italian mothers prior to their infants or toddlers entering group care. As measured by the Maternal Separation Anxiety Scale, mothers' anxiety did not vary with the child's age. Hierarchical regressions revealed that anxious mothers were younger and less educated, received less support, had temperamentally negative infants, and provided less varied stimulation in the home (accounting for 44% of the variance in general anxiety, subscale 1). For infants, only parent background and social support predicted anxiety, but for toddlers negative temperament and social isolation were predictive (together accounting for 38% of the variance). Anxiety of Italian mothers was similar on subscale 1 to U.S. samples, but lower on subscale 3.