Emotional Availability, Parental Self-Efficacy Beliefs, and Child Development in Caregiver-Child Relationships with Buprenorphine-Exposed 3-year-olds

SYNOPSIS

Objective . The purpose was to compare emotional availability, maternal self-efficacy beliefs, and child developmental status in caregiver–child relationships with prenatally buprenorphine-exposed and nonexposed 3-year-old children. Design. We compared prenatally buprenorphine-exposed children living either with the biological mother (n = 7) or in foster care (n = 14) to nonexposed participants (n = 13). Emotional availability was coded from videotaped parent-child free-play interactions. Results. After controlling for covariates, buprenorphine-exposed children scored lower on maternal Sensitivity and Nonhostility and child Responsiveness and Involvement as well as lower on the Bayley Cognitive and Language scales than did nonexposed children. As compared to foster mothers, biological mothers scored lower on Sensitivity and Nonhostility and self-efficacy beliefs, and their children scored lower on Responsiveness and the Bayley Cognitive Scale. Regardless of group status, the parenting variables were meaningfully related to child socioemotional variables. Conclusions . Buprenorphine-exposed children experienced more environmental risks in emotional availability and parental self-efficacy and performed worse on the Bayley as compared to nonexposed children.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

We thank Pekka Heiskari, Aleksi Levo, and Silja Salmi for their contributions to the project.