Kinsley, C.H. et al (2011)
When Mothers go Wrong: Likely Neural Undercurrents Related to Poor Parenting
Frontiers in Psychiatry 2, article 26

When Mothers go Wrong: Likely Neural Undercurrents Related to Poor Parenting (full summary)

• Changes occur in the chemistry and structure of some parts of the brains of women and female mammals when they become mothers.
• Differences in these brain regions between “good” (nurturing) and “poor” mothers can be observed in both humans and animals.
• Both animal experiments and observations of humans suggest that females who are not mothered well are themselves likely to become poor mothers.
• These observations suggest that brain changes associated with “learning” the role of a mother are not automatic and that they can be interfered with, which may disadvantage the offspring in the next generation.

• Mother Superior?
• Facial Expressions