Codification method and Categories of Content of the Baby-directed Maternal Speech

Maternal speech directed to the baby has been widely studied because of its importance in child development. In this paper we present a research method and a set of content categories of maternal speech. This methodological proposal is based on a research carried out with 80 mothers and their babies, divided into two groups: postpartum depressed (PPD) and non-depressed mothers. The frequency distribution of the categories was similar for the groups. There was no statistical difference in the means of the categories for the mothers, indicating that there is no change in speech style due to maternal depression. We consider that the suggested set of categories can be applied in study of the maternal speech of healthy or PPD mothers.