Relations between dynamics of parent-infant interactions and baseline EEG functional connectivity

Abstract Parent-infant interactions are one of the most critical and enduring aspects of infants’ experience. Qualities of parent-infant interactions are related to social-emotional and cognitive developmental outcomes, yet how parent-infant interactions shape the functional organization of the brain is only beginning to be understood. Functional connectivity provides information about how brain regions communicate. Patterns of functional connectivity, thus far understudied in infants, have emerged as markers of abnormalities in the organization of the brain in at-risk infants as well as individuals with neurodevelopmetnal and neurodegenerative disorders. The current study sought to inform our understanding of relations between qualities of parent-infant interactions and functional connectivity. We report relations between responsiveness, reciprocity, and emotional tone and functional connectivity in theta, alpha, beta, and gamma in infants ranging from 6 to 11 month of age (N = 51). Results showed frontal-posterior connectivity in theta was inversely related to all three dimensions of parent-infant interactions. Gamma and alpha connectivity were positively associated with responsiveness and emotional tone, respectively. Results are discussed in the context of the experience-dependent nature of brain development, emphasizing how parent-infant interactions might be leveraged to structure early organization of the brain to foster healthy social-emotional and cognitive developmental outcomes.