Johanne Smith‐nielsen
Biographic Data
| ID | 1463530 |
|---|---|
| NAME | Johanne Smith‐nielsen |
| GIVEN NAMES | Johanne |
| FAMILY NAME | Smith‐nielsen |
| SIGNATURE | NIELSEN J S |
| AFFILIATIONS | University of Copenhagen |
| ORCID | 0000-0003-3571-6335 |
| VERIFIED | Yes |
| TOTAL WORKS | 18 |
| TOTAL CITATIONS | 6 |
| AUTHOR COUNT | 18 |
| EDITOR COUNT | 0 |
| FIRST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2015 |
| LATEST PUBLICATION YEAR | 2026 |
| H-INDEX | 2 |
Representational mind-mindedness in Danish early childcare professionals: The role of child gender
Out-of-home early childcare is a central developmental context in Scandinavian countries. Evidence suggests that the quality of caregiver–child interactions is potentially linked to caregivers’ mentalizing capacity—the ability to understand children’s mental states. This study examined whether child gender is associated with caregiver mentalizing, measured as representational mind-mindedness (MM), in relationships perceived as challenging. The sa…
Caregivers’ interaction skills in center-based childcare: Associations with ratios, education, and interaction contexts
High-quality interactions between childcare professionals and children are essential for supporting child development. In this study, we examined how caregiver interaction skills vary in relation to child-to-caregiver ratios and caregiver education, and across different daily interaction contexts (e.g., meals and diaper changes) in early center-based childcare. Additionally, we compared different operationalizations of child-to-caregiver ratios a…
Mentalizing Care: Adult Attachment and Structural Factors as Predictors of Representational Mind‐Mindedness in Early Child‐Care Professionals
Out‐of‐home childcare is increasingly essential in many children's lives, significantly impacting their wellbeing and development. Central to high‐quality care is the concept of caregiver mind‐mindedness (MM), the ability to recognize a child as a unique psychological individual with thoughts, feelings, intentions etc., as this capacity is linked with more optimal responsiveness to children's needs. Despite its importance, the factors influencing…
Validating the parental reflective functioning questionnaire ‐ infant version using a rasch model
Parental reflective functioning is the parent's ability to reflect on the psychological processes in their child and in themselves as a parent. Recently, an infant version of the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire, PRFQ‐I, has been developed and validated using confirmatory factor analyses. The present study aims to validate the PRFQ‐I using a Rasch model in a sample of 531 Danish mothers at risk of depression and their infants aged 2–…
I'm with you, baby: Using parental embodied mentalizing in a pilot study to capture change following the circle of security parenting intervention
Supported by a large body of work demonstrating the impact of infant attachment representations on subsequent development, numerous therapeutic programs have been developed to promote secure attachment, with increasing focus on parental mentalizing. Nonetheless, empirical evidence supporting their effectiveness has yet to be fully established. The current pilot study ( N = 24) was designed to evaluate whether and to what extent parents' shifts in…
Maternal mentalizing and quality of interactive behavior with their infant in the first year postpartum: A meta-analysis
Maternal mentalizing is associated with early mother-infant interaction quality. • Mentalizing assessment method (offline/online measure) does not moderate the association. • Maternal socioeconomic risk status is a significant moderator of the association. The quality of parent-infant interaction is crucial for infant development, and the postpartum period is considered particularly important for subsequent developmental pathways. Parental mental…
Offline and online parental mentalizing in mothers with symptoms of postpartum depression: Examining the association between self‐reported parental reflective functioning and interactional mind‐minded…
Mentalizing is, to a certain extent, considered context specific. However, research on the association between parents’ abilities to reflect upon their infant's mental states outside social interaction (offline) versus during ongoing parent‐infant interaction (online) is currently limited. This study investigated the association between self‐reported offline and online mentalizing in a sample of primarily ethnically Danish mothers ( N = 142), wit…
Four‐year‐old children's pretend play complexity during free play and story stem play and associations with maternal sensitivity
Theory and research have linked pretend play in early childhood with the development of language and theory of mind. In 102 mother–child dyads at 4.5 years, we examined whether (1) introducing a story stem (a play narrative with socioemotional dilemmas) in a mother–child play context increases pretend play complexity compared with mother–child free play; and (2) maternal sensitivity is associated with pretend play complexity. Further, we explored…
The impact of childhood adversity on parenting stress is mediated by adult attachment and depressive symptoms
Adverse childhood experiences can have far‐reaching implications for later mental health, including in parenthood. Research suggests that childhood adversity is a risk factor for later parenting stress, yet the underlying mechanisms are only just being uncovered. Uncovering these mechanisms is important to diminish heightened levels of parenting stress and thereby reduce adverse effects of elevated parenting stress on child and parent outcomes. I…
Promoting interactive skills and mind-mindedness among early childcare professionals: Study protocol for a randomized wait-list controlled trial comparing the Circle of Security approach with care as …
ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04654533. Prospectively registered December 4, 2020, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04654533
The parental reflective functioning questionnaire: Infant version in fathers of infants and association with paternal postpartum mental health
The parents’ capacity to reflect upon the psychological processes in their child, termed parental reflective functioning (PRF) can be impaired by parental mental health problems. The present study aimed to investigate the factor structure of an infant version of the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (PRFQ‐I) in a low‐risk sample of 259 Danish fathers of 1–11‐month‐old infants to investigate measurement invariance of the PRFQ‐I between…
What factors are most important for the development of the maternal–fetal relationship? A prospective study among pregnant women in Danish general practice
Pregnant women reporting lack of social support and general low physical and mental well-being early in pregnancy may be at risk for developing a poor MAA. An approach targeting both psychosocial and physiological well-being may positively influence expectant mothers' successful adaptation to motherhood
Can the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale-3A be used to screen for anxiety
The EPDS-3A can be used as a time-efficient screening for possible anxiety in ante- and postnatal mothers. However, adding the EPDS-3A to routine screening with the total EPDS does not lead to a substantial increase in the number of women identified. In line with previous studies, this study confirms that the EPDS identifies anxiety in addition to depression. Therefore, assessment and treatment adjusted to the specific emotional difficulties is i…
Maternal postpartum depression is a risk factor for infant emotional variability at 4 months
Maternal postpartum depression (PPD) is a risk for disruption of mother–infant interaction. Infants of depressed mothers have been found to display less positive, more negative, and neutral affect. Other studies have found that infants of mothers with PPD inhibit both positive and negative affect. In a sample of 28 infants of mothers with PPD and 52 infants of nonclinical mothers, we examined the role of PPD diagnosis and symptoms for infants’ em…
Associations Between Maternal Postpartum Depression, Infant Social Behavior With a Stranger, and Infant Cognitive Development
Maternal postpartum depression (PPD) has been found to be related to infant social withdrawal during mother–infant interaction, and this may spill over on infant interactive behavior in other social contexts and impact infant psychosocial development. We investigated whether PPD was associated with infant social withdrawal during interaction with a tester in a psychological test situation and whether infant social withdrawal in the test situation…
Reflective functioning in postpartum depressed women with and without comorbid personality disorder
Mentalization or Reflective Functioning (RF), that is, the ability to reflect upon ones' own and others behavior in terms of underlying mental states, plays an important role in parenting behavior and children's socioemotional development. RF has been suggested to be impaired in psychopathology, and thus maternal psychopathology after birth, such as postpartum depression (PPD) and Personality Disorder (PD), may not only affect the mother's socioe…
Copenhagen infant mental health project: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial comparing circle of security –parenting and care as usual as interventions targeting infant mental health risk…
ClinicalTrials.govID: NCT02497677 . Registered July 15 2015
Infants of Depressed Mothers Show Reduced Gaze Activity During Mother–Infant Interaction at 4 Months
Gaze is one of the main means of communication in young infants, and it has been shown to be important for subsequent socio‐emotional and cognitive development. Maternal depression is a well‐known risk factor for disrupting mother–infant interactions, but findings regarding gaze behavior in infants of depressed versus nondepressed mothers have been ambiguous. In this study, we examined gaze duration and activity in a sample of 27 infants of mothe…
The parental reflective functioning questionnaire: Infant version in fathers of infants and association with paternal postpartum mental health
The parents’ capacity to reflect upon the psychological processes in their child, termed parental reflective functioning (PRF) can be impaired by parental mental health problems. The present study aimed to investigate the factor structure of an infant version of the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (PRFQ‐I) in a low‐risk sample of 259 Danish fathers of 1–11‐month‐old infants to investigate measurement invariance of the PRFQ‐I between…
Offline and online parental mentalizing in mothers with symptoms of postpartum depression: Examining the association between self‐reported parental reflective functioning and interactional mind‐minded…
Mentalizing is, to a certain extent, considered context specific. However, research on the association between parents’ abilities to reflect upon their infant's mental states outside social interaction (offline) versus during ongoing parent‐infant interaction (online) is currently limited. This study investigated the association between self‐reported offline and online mentalizing in a sample of primarily ethnically Danish mothers ( N = 142), wit…
Validating the parental reflective functioning questionnaire ‐ infant version using a rasch model
Parental reflective functioning is the parent's ability to reflect on the psychological processes in their child and in themselves as a parent. Recently, an infant version of the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire, PRFQ‐I, has been developed and validated using confirmatory factor analyses. The present study aims to validate the PRFQ‐I using a Rasch model in a sample of 531 Danish mothers at risk of depression and their infants aged 2–…
Infants of Depressed Mothers Show Reduced Gaze Activity During Mother–Infant Interaction at 4 Months
Gaze is one of the main means of communication in young infants, and it has been shown to be important for subsequent socio‐emotional and cognitive development. Maternal depression is a well‐known risk factor for disrupting mother–infant interactions, but findings regarding gaze behavior in infants of depressed versus nondepressed mothers have been ambiguous. In this study, we examined gaze duration and activity in a sample of 27 infants of mothe…
Copenhagen infant mental health project: Study protocol for a randomized controlled trial comparing circle of security –parenting and care as usual as interventions targeting infant mental health risk…
ClinicalTrials.govID: NCT02497677 . Registered July 15 2015
Reflective functioning in postpartum depressed women with and without comorbid personality disorder
Mentalization or Reflective Functioning (RF), that is, the ability to reflect upon ones' own and others behavior in terms of underlying mental states, plays an important role in parenting behavior and children's socioemotional development. RF has been suggested to be impaired in psychopathology, and thus maternal psychopathology after birth, such as postpartum depression (PPD) and Personality Disorder (PD), may not only affect the mother's socioe…
Associations Between Maternal Postpartum Depression, Infant Social Behavior With a Stranger, and Infant Cognitive Development
Maternal postpartum depression (PPD) has been found to be related to infant social withdrawal during mother–infant interaction, and this may spill over on infant interactive behavior in other social contexts and impact infant psychosocial development. We investigated whether PPD was associated with infant social withdrawal during interaction with a tester in a psychological test situation and whether infant social withdrawal in the test situation…
Maternal postpartum depression is a risk factor for infant emotional variability at 4 months
Maternal postpartum depression (PPD) is a risk for disruption of mother–infant interaction. Infants of depressed mothers have been found to display less positive, more negative, and neutral affect. Other studies have found that infants of mothers with PPD inhibit both positive and negative affect. In a sample of 28 infants of mothers with PPD and 52 infants of nonclinical mothers, we examined the role of PPD diagnosis and symptoms for infants’ em…
What factors are most important for the development of the maternal–fetal relationship? A prospective study among pregnant women in Danish general practice
Pregnant women reporting lack of social support and general low physical and mental well-being early in pregnancy may be at risk for developing a poor MAA. An approach targeting both psychosocial and physiological well-being may positively influence expectant mothers' successful adaptation to motherhood
Can the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale-3A be used to screen for anxiety
The EPDS-3A can be used as a time-efficient screening for possible anxiety in ante- and postnatal mothers. However, adding the EPDS-3A to routine screening with the total EPDS does not lead to a substantial increase in the number of women identified. In line with previous studies, this study confirms that the EPDS identifies anxiety in addition to depression. Therefore, assessment and treatment adjusted to the specific emotional difficulties is i…
The impact of childhood adversity on parenting stress is mediated by adult attachment and depressive symptoms
Adverse childhood experiences can have far‐reaching implications for later mental health, including in parenthood. Research suggests that childhood adversity is a risk factor for later parenting stress, yet the underlying mechanisms are only just being uncovered. Uncovering these mechanisms is important to diminish heightened levels of parenting stress and thereby reduce adverse effects of elevated parenting stress on child and parent outcomes. I…
Promoting interactive skills and mind-mindedness among early childcare professionals: Study protocol for a randomized wait-list controlled trial comparing the Circle of Security approach with care as …
ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT04654533. Prospectively registered December 4, 2020, https://clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT04654533
The parental reflective functioning questionnaire: Infant version in fathers of infants and association with paternal postpartum mental health
The parents’ capacity to reflect upon the psychological processes in their child, termed parental reflective functioning (PRF) can be impaired by parental mental health problems. The present study aimed to investigate the factor structure of an infant version of the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire (PRFQ‐I) in a low‐risk sample of 259 Danish fathers of 1–11‐month‐old infants to investigate measurement invariance of the PRFQ‐I between…
Four‐year‐old children's pretend play complexity during free play and story stem play and associations with maternal sensitivity
Theory and research have linked pretend play in early childhood with the development of language and theory of mind. In 102 mother–child dyads at 4.5 years, we examined whether (1) introducing a story stem (a play narrative with socioemotional dilemmas) in a mother–child play context increases pretend play complexity compared with mother–child free play; and (2) maternal sensitivity is associated with pretend play complexity. Further, we explored…
I'm with you, baby: Using parental embodied mentalizing in a pilot study to capture change following the circle of security parenting intervention
Supported by a large body of work demonstrating the impact of infant attachment representations on subsequent development, numerous therapeutic programs have been developed to promote secure attachment, with increasing focus on parental mentalizing. Nonetheless, empirical evidence supporting their effectiveness has yet to be fully established. The current pilot study ( N = 24) was designed to evaluate whether and to what extent parents' shifts in…
Maternal mentalizing and quality of interactive behavior with their infant in the first year postpartum: A meta-analysis
Maternal mentalizing is associated with early mother-infant interaction quality. • Mentalizing assessment method (offline/online measure) does not moderate the association. • Maternal socioeconomic risk status is a significant moderator of the association. The quality of parent-infant interaction is crucial for infant development, and the postpartum period is considered particularly important for subsequent developmental pathways. Parental mental…
Offline and online parental mentalizing in mothers with symptoms of postpartum depression: Examining the association between self‐reported parental reflective functioning and interactional mind‐minded…
Mentalizing is, to a certain extent, considered context specific. However, research on the association between parents’ abilities to reflect upon their infant's mental states outside social interaction (offline) versus during ongoing parent‐infant interaction (online) is currently limited. This study investigated the association between self‐reported offline and online mentalizing in a sample of primarily ethnically Danish mothers ( N = 142), wit…
Mentalizing Care: Adult Attachment and Structural Factors as Predictors of Representational Mind‐Mindedness in Early Child‐Care Professionals
Out‐of‐home childcare is increasingly essential in many children's lives, significantly impacting their wellbeing and development. Central to high‐quality care is the concept of caregiver mind‐mindedness (MM), the ability to recognize a child as a unique psychological individual with thoughts, feelings, intentions etc., as this capacity is linked with more optimal responsiveness to children's needs. Despite its importance, the factors influencing…
Validating the parental reflective functioning questionnaire ‐ infant version using a rasch model
Parental reflective functioning is the parent's ability to reflect on the psychological processes in their child and in themselves as a parent. Recently, an infant version of the Parental Reflective Functioning Questionnaire, PRFQ‐I, has been developed and validated using confirmatory factor analyses. The present study aims to validate the PRFQ‐I using a Rasch model in a sample of 531 Danish mothers at risk of depression and their infants aged 2–…
Representational mind-mindedness in Danish early childcare professionals: The role of child gender
Out-of-home early childcare is a central developmental context in Scandinavian countries. Evidence suggests that the quality of caregiver–child interactions is potentially linked to caregivers’ mentalizing capacity—the ability to understand children’s mental states. This study examined whether child gender is associated with caregiver mentalizing, measured as representational mind-mindedness (MM), in relationships perceived as challenging. The sa…
Caregivers’ interaction skills in center-based childcare: Associations with ratios, education, and interaction contexts
High-quality interactions between childcare professionals and children are essential for supporting child development. In this study, we examined how caregiver interaction skills vary in relation to child-to-caregiver ratios and caregiver education, and across different daily interaction contexts (e.g., meals and diaper changes) in early center-based childcare. Additionally, we compared different operationalizations of child-to-caregiver ratios a…
Psychology (16 works) · Developmental psychology (14 works) · Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development (13 works) · Maternal Mental Health During Pregnancy and Postpartum (12 works) · Clinical Psychology (9 works) · Psychiatry (9 works) · Attachment and Relationship Dynamics (5 works) · Early Childhood Education and Development (5 works) · Medicine (5 works) · Pregnancy (5 works)