3.48 MATERNAL PRENATAL PERCEIVED STRESS AND CHILD GESTATIONAL AGE AT BIRTH INDEPENDENTLY PREDICT ADOLESCENT MOTHERS' SENSITIVE RESPONSIVENESS

Objectives: Given robust associations between diminished maternal-responsive caregiving and children's risk of mental health problems, understanding the multiple determinants of the quality of maternal caregiving is critical, especially in an at-risk context. In this study, we investigated whether prenatal maternal-perceived stress and rumination predicted qualities in adolescent mothers' caregiving with their infants. We also explored whether childbirth circumstances partially mediated the association of perceived stress and rumination with an index of sensitive caregiving. Methods: Participants were women aged 14-19 years (N = 50; mean age = 17.48 years, SD = 1.40) recruited during healthy pregnancy. They completed the Perceived Stress and Rumination scales during the second and third trimesters. Birth circumstances [gestational age (range: 33-42 weeks), birth weight (range: 975-4,250 grams)] were culled from medical records. Mothers and infants (age 14 months) participated in a 10-minute videotaped free play. Video footage was used to code maternal warmth and contingent responsiveness, which were correlated strongly and thus standardized and averaged to create a sensitive responsiveness composite. Results: Zero-order correlations revealed that perceived stress (r =-0.45, P