What is Infant Mental Health?

This is a common question practitioners are asked. The following definitions are given by the World Association of Infant Mental Health and Zero to Three.

Defining infant mental health as the ability to develop physically, cognitively, and socially in a manner which allows them to master the primary emotional tasks of early childhood without serious disruption caused by harmful life events. Because infants grow in a context of nurturing environments, infant mental health involves the psychological balance of the infant-family system.

WAIMH Handbook of Infant Mental Health, vol 1, p.25

In young children, mental health is often equated with healthy social and emotional development, which is defined as "the developing capacity of the young child to experience, regulate, and express emotions;form close and secure interpersonal relationships; and explore the environment and learn, in the context of a caregiving environment that includes family, community, and cultural expectations for young children."

Zero to Three Infant Mental Health Steering Committee.

Definition of infant mental health. Washington, D.C.: Zero To Three; 2001. Available from: www.zerotothree.org

ITMHCA is an affiliate of the World Association for Infant Mental Health.