Colic and Parents

Cynthia A. Stifter & Tracy Spinrad

Human Development and Family Studies

The Pennsylvania State University
 
 

Key conclusion: While infant colic is a very stressful condition for both child and parent, there appears to be no negative affect on parenting behavior or the parent-child relationship.

See also:

Attachment

Child maltreatment

Competence

Crying

Mothering

Separation Anxiety

Stress
 
 

Having a child who cries inconsolably is of significant concern to parents. Referred to as Acolic@, this condition continues to be an enigma to pediatricians and researchers. There are many hypotheses about the cause of colic ranging from an allergy to cow=s milk to an immature gastrointestinal system. Difficulties with defining the behavioral symptoms of colic are likely to have contributed to the lack of consensus about the origins of this condition. Originally described by Wessel (Wessel, etal., 1954) as a healthy infant who has Aparoxysms of irritability, fussing, or crying lasting for a total of more than three hours a day and occurring on more than three days in any one week,@ this definition has been more recently extended to include a distinctive pain cry, physical signs of muscle tension, and inconsolability (Lester, 1990). Colic is also known to emerge within the infant=s first month but to end, sometimes quite abruptly, around the third or fourth month.

Interestingly, one proposed cause of colic has been insensitive parenting. It is believed that parents whose infants develop colic respond inappropriately to the crying of their infant thereby increasing rather than decreasing their infant=s distress. This highly controversial hypothesis is supported by evidence that shows when parents are given instructions on when and how to respond to their infant=s cries, crying decreases (Taubman, 1984). While this evidence would indicate that parenting style is related to colic there are some limitations of this study which should be noted. For example, parents who participated in this intervention came to the pediatrician complaining of problematic crying. Thus, the parents may have possessed characteristics that lead them to differentially interpret the crying of their child as excessive. Some parents may have a low tolerance for infant crying and therefore, be more likely to refer their infants for colic, and to view bouts of fussing and crying as longer than they actually are. In fact, a study that examined the pre-birth characteristics of families and colic found that mothers who experienced the most stress were more likely to report their infants as having colic (Rautava, Helenius, & Lehtonen, 1993). More recent evidence, however, suggests that parents who refer their infants for problematic crying but do not have colic, are responding to some qualitative difference in their infants= cry.

While the debate on the causes of colic continues, there is little disagreement about the potential impact that infant colic will have on parents. From a transactional perspective, it is argued that the dynamic between the parent and an inconsolable baby may have short- and possibly long-term effects on the parent-child relationship. Indeed, in the extreme case, some have suggested that infants with colic are at highest risk for child abuse. The few studies that have examined the consequences of having a colicky child, thus far, indicate that there are no negative outcomes for the parents of colicky infants. Stifter and Braungart (1992) found mothers of colic and noncolic infants to be alike in observed maternal sensitivity at both 5 and 10 months. In another study (St. James Roberts, Conroy, & Wilsher, in press), mothers of colic infants were found to be less sensitive than mothers of noncolic infants at 6 weeks of age, but no differences emerged on maternal interactive behavior at 5 months of age. These studies suggest that maternal behavior may be stressed when colic is at its peak but returns to normal levels when the colic is resolved. They may also explain why no long-term effects of infant colic on the parent-child relationship have been found. Whereas, one of the most consistent precursors to poor parent-child attachment has been insensitive mothering there is some indication that a difficult temperament may also contribute to insecure attachment. Infants who developed colic, however, were not more likely to be insecurely attached than infants who did not have colic (Stifter & Bono, 1995). On the contrary, the number of securely attached colic infants was well above the norm found in other studies of noncolic infants.

While there appears to be no negative effect for infant colic on maternal behavior, there is some evidence that mothers are affected personally by their interactions with an inconsolable child (Stifter & Bono, 1995). Mothers of infants who had colic rated themselves as less competent than mothers of infants who did not have colic. This finding is not surprising when one considers the intensity and duration of the crying exhibited by colicky infants. Feelings of incompetence are likely compounded by the inconsolability of a colicky baby. The ability to respond with success to an infant=s needs is the basis of maternal self-efficacy. When attempts to soothe an infant are met with failure then feelings of incompetence are likely to develop. Mothers also rated themselves as more anxious when separated from their child. This finding may be related to the mother=s perception that her child is more vulnerable and in need of their protection. In light of the findings reported above, it appears that mothers of colic infants did not allow their personal feelings to influence their interactions with their infants and that these feelings were likely resolved once mothers had more experience with a happier, more quiescent infant.

Taken together, research on infant colic suggest that while this is a stressful condition for both child and parent, colic produces no adverse short- or long-term effects on parent behavior or on the parent-child relationship. However, since it is estimated that 15-20% of parents consult their pediatrician about problematic crying, it is important that pediatricians and practitioners be attentive to parents who complain about their infants= crying and suggest that parents take occasional breaks from their caretaking responsibilities.

References:

Lester, B. M. (1990). Colic for developmentalists. Infant Mental Health, 11, 321-333.

Rautava, P., Helenius, H. & Lehtonen, L. (1993). British Medical Journal, 307, 600-604.

St. James Roberts, I., Conroy, S., & Wilsher, K. (in press). Clinical, developmental, and social aspects of infant crying and colic. Early Development and Parenting.

Stifter, C.A. & Braungart, J. (1992). Infant colic: A transient condition with no apparent effects. Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 13, 447-462.

Stifter, C.A. & Bono, M. (1995). The effects of excessive crying on maternal self-perceptions and mother-infant attachment. Paper presented at the International Infant Cry Conference, Budapest Hungary.

Taubman, B. (1984). Clinical trial of the treatment of colic by modification of parent-infant interaction. Pediatrics, 74, 998-1003.

Wessel, M., Cobb, J., Jackson, E., Harris, G., & Detwiler, A. (1954). Paroxysmal fussing in infancy, sometimes called Acolic.@Pediatrics, 14, 421-434.

Back to Recent Publications