Abstract

Converging literature has shown that physical contact and babywearing – the practice of carrying the baby in a sling – promote bonding in the mother-infant dyad and regulate infants’ behavioral states in infancy. Our pilot study aimed at exploring whether dancing with the baby in the sling can support mother-infant bonding and have a positive effect on infants’ temperament. Through a pre-test, post-test design, half of the mother-infant dyads were assigned to the babywear dance group, and the other half, to the control group. Maternal attachment before and after the training was assessed through the MPAS (Maternal Postpartum Attachment Scale) and infants’ temperament through the IBQ-VSF (Infant behavioral questionnaire very short form). Results have shown that the babywear dance training promoted both mother-infant attachment scores and infants’ temperamental profile, supporting mother-infant bonding and infants’ developmental processes