Maternal and infant bonding: Concept Paper

Abstract

Maternal-infant bonding is a maternal-driven process that occurs primarily throughout the first
year of a baby’s life, but may continue throughout a child’s life. It is an affective state of the
mother; maternal feelings and emotions toward the infant are the primary indicator of maternalinfant
bonding. The first hour of life is very critical in any baby’s life and it is the critical hour to
create a bond between a mother and her baby.
Objective: The purpose of the concept analysis was to describe the importance, barriers and
consequences of Maternal-infant bonding. Methods and materials
Walker and Avant model of concept analysis which looks into the attributes, antecedence and
consequences, exemplars and recommendations was used. Literature search was conducted in a
month’s and a half’s time using, bonding journals, Pub- med and MEDLINE, Google and Google
Scholar as search engines. Twenty four studies that were found relevant to the concept of interest
were included in the description of maternal and infant bonding. Maternal and infant bonding
was encouraged in most of the studies.
Results
It was noted that preconception care plays a vital role in the bonding process as pre conception
women can learn how to bond with their babies even when they are pregnant and not to wait for
the baby to be born.
Conclusion and recommendations
Midwives and all other health professionals are encouraged to include maternal and infant
bonding in most of the health education sessions.