Maternal vocalization directed to preterm infants: speech and singing as elements of mother-infant interaction in the NICU

Maternal vocalizations, both speaking and singing, are very important for building the bond and communicative musicality with the baby, both for term infants, but especially for preterm infants hospitalized in Neonatal Intensive Care Units (NICU), due to the limitations that this situation presents for the mother-infant interaction. The present study aimed to investigate the vocalization of mothers of preterm babies hospitalized in the NICU, in particular, the use they made of infant directed speech and singing, and how they perceived their vocal interactions with the baby. It was also sought to understand how the elements of musicality were presented in the vocalizations of speech and singing. For this purpose, a design of multiple case studies was used, and the results are presented in two parts. Part I presents an inductive thematic analysis of the reports of nine mothers, regarding the vocalization experience in the NICU, where 3 themes were constructed and discussed: (1) Vocalization associated with mother-baby interaction; (2) Vocalization as a basis for the constitution of the mother-baby bond; and (3) Content of maternal vocalization. Part II presents the results of the microanalysis of musical scores of the interaction of four mother-baby dyads, derived from an observation filmed in the NICU, involving two moments, one of speech and the other of maternal singing. In general, the results revealed that both for babies and mothers themselves, maternal vocalizations are very important in the context of the NICU, especially as a way of approaching the baby, bond formation, and communicating with the children. We emphasize the construction of communicative musicality from maternal vocalization and gestures, as well as the sucking and eye movements of premature babies, contributing to the bond in the NICU, especially when other forms of interaction are not available. This study also reveal This study also reveals that, despite the shyness in the use of the voice, singing vocalizations proved to be important in protecting the mother-baby interaction from intrusions from the NICU environment, and had a calming effect on the mothers themselves. The results extend the knowledge about the use of maternal vocalizations in the NICU and reinforce the importance of interventions that use the voice in this context, such as music therapy.

Master’s dissertation in Psychology (UFRGS). Text available in Portuguese.