Early maternal stimulation and the development of cognitive competence and attention of preterm infants

Abstract

The aim of the study was to investigate the relationship between several dimensions of maternal interactive behaviours, and cognitive development and attention in preterm infants. Of special interest was the question of whether high levels of maternal stimulation and activity may have negative consequences for the development of preterm infants. Sixty-six preterm infants and their mothers were followed longitudinally and videotaped in interaction situations at home, at the infant age of 6, 9 and 12 months. Mothers behaviours were scored on involvement, sensitive responsiveness, non-intrusiveness and level of activity. Moreover, infant cognitive status was assessed at 6, 12 and 24 months of age, using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. Infant ability in problem solving and attention were assessed in two problem solving tasks at 18 and 24 months of age. The results showed that infant cognitive status at 12 and 24 months was best predicted by maternal involvement and infant responsiveness. No significant relationships were found between maternal interactive behaviours and infant ability in problem solving and attention. More importantly, there was no indication that high levels of maternal stimulation or intrusiveness may have a negative impact on later cognitive development and attention in preterm infants. © 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.Key words: mother-infant interaction; cognitive development; attention; prematurity Studies of mother -infant interaction during the infant's first year of life have consistently shown that the processes involved in early interaction and communication between a mother and her infant are different for preterm and fullterm dyads (Field, 1977;Brown and Bakeman, 1980;Crawford, 1982;Minde et al., 1985;Malatesta et al., 1986;Van Beek et al., 1994). Preterm infants are prone to minimal attentiveness, less smiling and vocalising, more gaze

Early Social Enrichment Rescues Adult Behavioral and Brain Abnormalities in a Mouse Model of Fragile X Syndrome

“…Our results, instead, highlight the importance of the time spent in physical contact with the pups as a powerful index of maternal stimulation, as already suggested by previous mouse studies (Shoji and Kato, 2006). This finding agrees with some human data emphasizing the importance of maternal contact/involvement in early child stimulation: studies in preterm babies have shown, for example, a correlation between maternal involvement and the infants' cognitive development during the first year of life (Wijnroks, 1998).…”

Longitudinal relations of maternal supportiveness and child task-approach behavior to early cognitive development of children with developmental risks

“…Some researchers have found concurrent relations between parent-child interaction and children's cognition (Ayoun, 1998;Poehlmann & Fiese, 2001;Tzurie & Weiss, 1998;van Bakel & Riksen-Walrave, 2002, etc.). Others have found that earlier parent-child interaction predicted children's later cognition (Cohen & Parmelee, 1983;Croft, et al, 2001;Wijnroks, 1998). The current study also found positive relations between maternal supportiveness and children's cognition.…”

Quality of caregiver-child play interactions with toddlers born preterm and full term: Antecedents and language outcome

“…The current study contributes to the extant literature by demonstrating that the association between caregiver behavior and language difficulty can be documented even earlier in development. On the other hand, previous research on toddlers born PT has found that caregiver behavior, specifically intrusiveness, does not lead to adverse outcomes in cognition or attention [44]. These conflicting findings warrant further inquiry to elucidate the effect of parenting on child competency in the aforementioned developmental domains.…”