The transition to motherhood is a challenging period that entails not only multiple stresses, but also the potential for personal growth. This study examined mothers’ personal growth up to two years following the birth of their first child, investigating the contribution of the child’s perceived characteristics and three sources of perceived support, as well as the possibility that the connection between support and personal growth is mediated by perception of the infant. Israeli mothers (n = 511) completed self-report questionnaires. Positive associations were found between higher perception of the infant as warm, lower perception of the infant as invasive, and higher perceived support from all sources. Moreover, path analysis revealed that higher perceived support from family and a significant other was associated with higher perception of the infant as warm, which in turn was related to higher personal growth. The findings highlight both the direct value of support from various sources and its ability to promote a more positive perception of the child, along with the role of new mothers’ perception of their infant in facilitating the experience of personal growth. Practitioners should therefore pay attention both to mothers’ assets and to risk factors for a negative interpretation of the child’s behavior.

向母亲过渡是一个充满挑战的时期，不仅需要多重压力，还需要个人成长的潜力。本研究考察了母亲在第一个孩子出生后长达两年的个人成长，调查了孩子的感知特征和感知支持的三个来源的贡献，以及支持与个人成长之间的联系受以下因素影响的可能性：对婴儿的认知。以色列母亲 ( n = 511) 完成的自我报告问卷。在对婴儿温暖的较高感知、对婴儿作为侵入性的较低感知以及来自所有来源的较高感知支持之间发现了正相关。此外，路径分析表明，来自家庭和重要他人的更高感知支持与更高的婴儿温暖感知相关，这反过来又与更高的个人成长有关。研究结果强调了来自各种来源的支持的直接价值及其促进对孩子更积极看法的能力，以及新妈妈对婴儿的看法在促进个人成长经历中的作用。因此，从业者应该注意母亲的资产和对孩子行为做出负面解释的风险因素。