Very pre-term infants' behaviour at 1 and 2 years of age and parental stress following basic developmental care
article
This study explored the effects of basic developmental care on the behaviour of very pre-term infants and parental stress at I and 2 years of corrected age. A randomized controlled trial was done to compare basic Developmental Care (standardized nests and incubator covers) and controls (standard care). Parents of infants born < 32 weeks of gestation completed questionnaires measuring child behaviour and parental stress at 1 year (N = 139) and 2 years (N = 133) of the child's age. Parental stress was measured using the Nijmegen Parenting Stress Index and child behaviour was measured using the Infant-Toddler Social and Emotional Assessment (ITSEA) and the Child Behaviour Checklist 2-3. At 1 year of age, children in the basic developmental care group had significantly higher behaviour scores on the total competence domain (p = .009) and the competence subscale mastery motivation (p = .002) of the ITSEA questionnaire, meaning that the infants showed more curiosity, persistence, obedience and enjoyment with small accomplishments. No significant effects were found on problem behaviour or parenting stress. We conclude that introducing a basic form of developmental care in the neonatal intensive care unit has a positive influence on the child's competence behaviour at I year of age. © 2008 The British Psychological Society.
Topics
TNO Identifier
240672
ISSN
0261510X
Source
British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 26(1), pp. 103-115.
Pages
103-115
Files
To receive the publication files, please send an e-mail request to TNO Repository.