Breastfeeding and offspring's compassion and empathy in adulthood: A study with an over 30‐year follow‐up.
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| Title: | Breastfeeding and offspring's compassion and empathy in adulthood: A study with an over 30‐year follow‐up. |
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| Authors: | Saarinen, Aino I. L., Keltikangas‐Järvinen, Liisa, Honda, Yukiko, Oksman, Elli, Raitakari, Olli, Pulkki‐Råback, Laura, Hintsanen, Mirka |
| Source: | Scandinavian Journal of Psychology. Apr2020, Vol. 61 Issue 2, p227-236. 10p. 5 Charts, 2 Graphs. |
| Subjects: | Psychology of alcoholism, Smoking & psychology, Age distribution, Birth weight, Breastfeeding, Child behavior, Children of people with mental illness, Empathy, Families, Gestational age, Premature infants, Longitudinal method, Maternal age, Parent-child relationships, Parenting, Personality, Questionnaires, Sex distribution, Compassion, Socioeconomic factors, Parent attitudes, Adults |
| Geographic Terms: | Finland |
| Abstract: | This study investigated whether breastfeeding predicts offspring's dispositional compassion and empathy from early adulthood to middle age. The parents of the participants (N = 1,394) of the Young Finns study answered questions about breastfeeding in 1983, and the participants' compassion and empathy were evaluated in 1997‒2012 (participants were aged 20‒50 years). Breastfeeding did not predict the course of compassion or empathy in adulthood at the age of 20‒50 years. The associations remained non‐significant, when adjusted for age, gender, socioeconomic factors, and a wide range of characteristics of the family environment (including mother's gestational age; premature birth; birth weight; number of other children at home; parental mental disorder; parental relationship status; parental postnatal smoking; parental postnatal alcohol use; parenting behavior; and child's externalizing behavior). In conclusion, breastfeeding seems not to predict offspring's compassion or empathy in adulthood. The findings may present a hopeful perspective for children growing up with non‐breastfeeding caregivers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR] |
| Copyright of Scandinavian Journal of Psychology is the property of Wiley-Blackwell and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites without the copyright holder's express written permission. Additionally, content may not be used with any artificial intelligence tools or machine learning technologies. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.) | |
| Database: | Psychology and Behavioral Sciences Collection |
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