Intervention 1. Provision of information (verbally, electronically or on paper); for example, handing out a leaflet about the following topics:

• skin-to-skin contact
• cuddling the baby
• talking to the baby
• massaging the baby
• being responsive to cues or small signals the baby may send
• copying the baby’s noises and gestures
• providing comfort when the baby is upset
• getting enough sleep and having support.

Intervention 2. Skills training (for example, teaching mothers how to massage babies or role modelling by a healthcare professional during home visits)

Interventions will be included if they are:

• initiated in the first 8 weeks after birth
• initiated in the antenatal period and continue into the postnatal period.

Comparator 1. Standard care or different information packets. Modalities of information (for example, oral versus written) will be not be compared.

Comparator 2. Standard care or different educational intervention

Intervention 1 will be compared to comparator 1, intervention 2 will be compared with comparator 2. Data permitting, interventions 1 and 2 will be compared against each other.

• Mother’s feelings towards the baby when the baby is 12 to 18 months of age
• Quality of mother-baby interaction when the baby is 12 to 18 months of age
• Proportion of babies displaying an insecure attachment type (which includes ambivalent, avoidance, disorganised) when the baby is 12 to 18 months of age

• The nature of the early mother-baby relationship (based on the mother’s subjective perception) when the baby is 12 to 18 months of age
• Social behaviour of the baby when the baby is 12 to 18 months of age