Semillas de Apego: Experimental Evaluation of a Group-Based Program to Foster Maternal Mental Health and Early Childhood Development Among Conflict Exposed Communities

Violence leaves a legacy of poverty and psychological trauma [1,2]. Children who experienced violence during early childhood lag in cognitive and socioemotional development, while victimized mothers are likely to neglect their children [3,4]. Protecting children from effects of violence, toxic stress, and deficits in maternal care is a key challenge in contexts of violence and humanitarian crises. We will implement and evaluate a group-based psychosocial program for victimized mothers with children 0 to 5 in Colombia, a country devastated by violence. Our program promotes healthy child-parent attachments as a pathway for a proper development among children exposed to violence [5]. By fostering mothers’ mental health and capacity to become a source of emotional protection, we can help children reach their full potential amid such traumatic circumstances. This will provide key lessons for the implementation of early childhood policies in Colombia and in other humanitarian contexts.