Do developmental and temperamental characteristics mediate the association between preterm birth and the quality of mother-child interaction?

BackgroundThe current study aims to evaluate the association between preterm birth and the quality of mother-child interaction of very preterm-, moderate preterm-, and full-term-born children at 18 and 36 months and to determine whether developmental and behavioral characteristics mediate the association between preterm birth and the quality of mother-child interaction.MethodParticipants included 110 preterm-born children and 39 full-term-born children assessed at ages 18 and 36 months. Mother-child free play interactions, the Mullen Scales of Early Learning, the Infant Behavior Questionnaire, and the Early Childhood Behavior Questionnaire were administered.ResultsSignificant associations between preterm birth and the quality of mother-child interaction were found at 18 and 36 months. The mother-child interaction quality was less optimal for the preterm-born children compared with the full-term-born children, mainly so for the very preterm-born children. Unlike behavioral characteristics, cognitive development was found to mediate the association between the gestational age-based group and the quality of mother-child interaction.ConclusionsIntervention programs for preterm-born children and their families, should consider maternal and children’s behaviors during mother-child interactions, in addition to cognitive, language, motor and emotional regulation abilities, and particularly so with very preterm-born children, who exhibit slower cognitive development.     

Behavioral Problems in Taiwanese Children of Adolescent and Adult Mothers

The purpose of this study was to estimate child behavioral problems over time and determine gender differences in behavioral problems between children born to adolescent and adult mothers in Taiwan. The consistency between parent’s and teacher’s reports was also examined. Secondary analysis of a longitudinal dataset from Taiwan was conducted. A matched sample of 107 children born to adolescent mothers and 111 children born to adult mothers were recruited. Child behavioral problems were assessed by parents at Time 1 (1^st and 2^nd grades) and by teachers at both Time 1 and Time 2 (5^th and 6^th grades). Generalized estimating equations and paired t-test were used. At Time 1, compared to children of adult mothers, children of adolescent mothers had had more behavioral problems by both parental and teacher’s reports. Both parents and teachers reported that boys had more behavioral problems than girls. Moreover, according to teacher reports, children of adolescent mothers and boys had more behavioral problems and these differences persisted over time, even controlling for sociodemographic characteristics. In addition, parents reported higher scores of behavioral problems than teachers. In conclusion, child behavioral problems in Taiwan are associated with maternal age at child birth and child’s gender. Interventions may profitably focus on determining the mechanisms that lead to behavior problems in children of adolescent mothers, and/or reducing adolescent pregnancy as a way of decreasing child behavioral problems. Screening and preventive interventions for child behavior problems may need to be gender-specific.     

The Mullen scales of early learning: ceiling effects among preschool children

Two cognitive tests were administered to typically developing children (36–67 months): the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL), which is appropriate for very young children and thus often used in research with atypical samples (e.g., children with Autism Spectrum Disorder), and the Kaufman Assessment Battery for Children (K-ABC). This was done in order to re-examine possible MSEL ceiling effects in a new sample and achieve a more in-depth understanding of these ceiling effects, if indeed present. Results indicated that among children ranging in age from 51 to 68 months, MSEL scores were significantly lower than K-ABC scores, and that with increasing age the number of children who completed the MSEL without establishing a ceiling level increased. Our results indicated that the MSEL scores are affected by ceiling effects and, therefore, the test underestimates cognitive abilities among older and more cognitively able children.     

Early and persistent motor difficulties in infants at-risk of developing autism spectrum disorder: A prospective study

Analyses were conducted in order to investigate motor development in younger siblings of children diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Infants at familial risk and low risk of developing ASD were tested longitudinally between the ages of 7 and 36 months. Data were analysed from motor scales on the Mullen Scales of Early Learning and the Vineland Adaptive Behaviour Scales at each age point. Significantly lower motor scores in at-risk infants were evident from the age of 7 months compared to the low-risk group. Infants who were later diagnosed with ASD demonstrated significantly poorer Fine Motor skills at 36 months than at-risk infants without any developmental difficulties. In addition, Gross Motor scores were highly correlated across the two measures for low-risk infants and infants who later developed ASD. Early motor difficulties may be an early indicator of a number of neurodevelopmental disorders, including ASD.     

Verbal and nonverbal predictors of executive function in early childhood

The study of executive function (EF) has become increasingly popular in multiple areas of research. A wealth of evidence has supported the value of EF in shaping notable outcomes across typical and atypical development; however, little evidence has supported the cognitive contributors to early EF development. The current study used data from a large longitudinal sample of healthy children to investigate the differential influence of verbal and nonverbal cognition on later EF. Participants were assessed at 2 years of age using the Mullen Scales of Early Learning, and Mullen scores were used to calculate nonverbal and verbal developmental quotients. Executive function was measured at 6 years using assessments from the Stanford-Binet, Cambridge Neuropsychological Test Automated Battery, and the Behavior Rating Inventory of Executive Function. Results suggested that early nonverbal cognition was a better predictor of 6-year EF as measured by task-based laboratory assessments, whereas verbal cognition was a better predictor of parent-reported EF. Findings are discussed in regard to EF development and characteristics of EF measurement.     

Trajectories of cognitive development among American Indian young children

Children who begin kindergarten with stronger skills learn faster than do those who enter with lower skills. Minority children tend to enter kindergarten already at a disadvantage, and the gap widens across time. However, little is known about cognitive development among American Indian young children. In this study, 110 American Indian infants from one Northern Plains reservation community were assessed four times between ages 6 months and 36 months, with the Mullen Scales of Early Learning. At 6 months of age, scores were near the national norms; a drop occurred between 6 months and 15 months. Scores then tended to level off below the norms through 36 months. In each domain, we observed a crucial decline over the 1st year of life and relatively little change in the 2nd and 3rd years of life, highlighting the importance of developing culturally syntonic interventions to facilitate cognitive development during the 1st year of life.     

Risk and Protective Factors for Children of Adolescents: Maternal Depression and Parental Sense of Competence

We investigated the relationship between depression and parental sense of competence to child cognitive outcomes for a sample of 49 adolescent mothers and their young children (Mean age=9 1/2 months) enrolled in a student parenting program. Cognitive development of the infants and toddlers was assessed using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. Maternal depression was assessed with the CES-D and parental competence measured with the Parental Sense of Competence Scale. Results indicated that maternal depression and parental sense of competence alone did not predict children’s cognitive scores; the interaction of the variables significantly predicted children’s outcomes. Mothers reporting high levels of depression, who self-reported high levels of parental competence, had children who scored higher on the Bayley. Children of mothers with high levels of depression, and low reported levels of competence scored lower on the Bayley. The relationship was not significant for mothers reporting low levels of depression. Our findings suggest additional research needs to focus on the buffering effect of parental sense of competence for adolescent mothers experiencing depression.     

Concurrent validity of the differential ability scales,second edition with the Mullen Scales of Early Learning in young children with and without neurodevelopmental disorders

Estimates of intelligence in young children with neurodevelopmental disorders are critical for making diagnoses, in characterizing symptoms of disorders, and in predicting future outcomes. The limitations of standardized testing for children with developmental delay or cognitive impairment are well known: Tests do not exist that provide developmentally appropriate material along with norms that extend to the lower reaches of ability. Two commonly used and interchanged instruments are the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL), a test of developmental level, and the Differential Ability Scales, second edition (DAS-II), a more traditional cognitive test. We evaluated the correspondence of contemporaneous MSEL and the DAS-II scores in a mixed sample of children aged 2–10 years with autism spectrum disorder (ASD), non-ASD developmental delays, and typically developing children across the full spectrum of cognitive ability. Consistent with published data on the original DAS and the MSEL, scores on the DAS-II and MSEL were highly correlated. However, curve estimation revealed large mean differences that varied as a function of the child’s cognitive ability level. We conclude that interchanging MSEL and DAS-II scores without regard to the discrepancy in scores may produce misleading results in both cross-sectional and longitudinal studies of children with and without ASD, and, thus, this practice should be implemented with caution.     

Cognitive development in children of adolescent mothers: The impact of socioeconomic risk and maternal sensitivity

BackgroundAdolescent motherhood is accompanied by a constellation of risk factors that translate into developmental risk for the off-spring. Socioeconomic risk that is associated with adolescent motherhood as well as maternal interactive behaviors may contribute to the impact of adolescent motherhood on children’s developmental outcome.ObjectiveTherefore, the aim of the current study was to investigate differences in children’s cognitive development between children of adolescent and adult mothers in their first two years of life and to examine whether socioeconomic risk (e.g. such as educational and financial problems) and/or maternal sensitivity mediate developmental differences between children of adolescent and adult mothers.MethodsAdolescent mothers (<21 years; N = 64) and adult mothers (>25 years; N = 34) and their infants were included in the current study. Child cognitive development and maternal sensitivity were assessed at three different time points (T1: mean child age 5.26 months; T2: mean child age 14.69 months; T3: mean child age 21.16 months).ResultsChildren of adult mothers showed better cognitive performance at T3 compared to children of adolescent mothers but not at T1 and T2. A multiple mediation model including socioeconomic risk and maternal sensitivity as serial mediators demonstrated that the effect of adolescent motherhood on cognitive development was mediated in a causal effect chain with socioeconomic risk negatively affecting maternal sensitivity and maternal sensitivity affecting children’s cognitive development.DiscussionThe present findings demonstrate that maternal interactive behaviors are not only a simple predictor of cognitive development but may also act as a mediator of the association between more distal variables such as socioeconomic risk and cognitive development in adolescent mothers. This supports the need to promote prevention and intervention programs for adolescent mothers during the early postpartum period to reduce socioeconomic problems and enhance maternal interactive behaviors.     

Group Intensive Family Training (GIFT) for preschoolers with autism spectrum disorders

Early, intensive behavioral intervention is effective in treating children with autism spectrum disorders (ASDs), but can be cost prohibitive. Expenses may be defrayed if children can benefit from parents acting as therapists. This quantitative case series examines the efficacy of the Group Intensive Family Training (GIFT) program, a 12‐week (180 h, delivered 3 h each weekday) parent‐training for preschoolers with ASDs. Parents were individually mentored in the hands‐on application of behavior analytic techniques, implementing these skills in vivo within a group of six parent–child dyads. Seventy‐two parents and children (ages 25–68 months) with ASDs participated in this study. Children's cognitive and adaptive functioning was assessed before and after the intervention program. Analyses revealed average gains of eight standard score points on the Mullen Early Learning Composite and five standard score points on the Vineland Adaptive Behavior Composite after 12 weeks of treatment. Additionally, 14% and 11% of the children moved from the ‘impaired’ to ‘non‐impaired’ range on Mullen and Vineland composite scores, respectively. This preliminary investigation suggests that GIFT's behavioral, group parent‐training can lead to significant, yet cost‐ and time‐efficient gains for children with ASDs. Results must be interpreted with caution because of the absence of a control group. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Use of the Mullen Scales of Early Learning for the assessment of young children with Autism Spectrum Disorders.

The psychological assessment is an important component of the diagnostic evaluation in young children suspected of having an Autism Spectrum Disorder but can be hampered by behavioral difficulties. Overt behaviors during administration of the Mullen Scales of Early Learning were coded in 22 preschoolers with an Autism Spectrum Disorder and 20 age-matched typically developing children. Children in the Autism Spectrum Disorder group required less time to complete the assessment but spent proportionally more time exhibiting off-task behaviors and less time engaged with the assessment. Scores obtained on the Mullen Scales were positively correlated with level of engagement and negatively correlated with off task behaviors.     

Infants’ sense of approximate numerosity: Heritability and link to other concurrent traits

The ability to perceive approximate numerosity is present in many animal species, and emerges early in human infants. Later in life, it is moderately heritable and associated with mathematical abilities, but the etiology of the Approximate Number System (ANS) and its degree of independence from other cognitive abilities in infancy is unknown. Here, we assessed the phenotypic specificity as well as the influence of genetic and environmental factors on the ANS in a sample of 5-month-old twins (N = 514). We found a small-to-moderate but statistically significant effect of genetic factors on ANS acuity (heritability = 0.18, 95% CI: 0.02, 0.33), but only when differences in numerosity were relatively large (1:4 ratio). Non-verbal ability assessed with the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL) was found to be heritable (0.47; 95% CI: 0.34, 0.57) and the phenotypic association between ANS acuity and non-verbal ability performance was close to zero. Similarly, we found no association between ANS acuity and general attention during the task. An unexpected weak but statistically significant negative association between ANS acuity and scores on the receptive language scale of the MSEL was found. These results suggest that early ANS function may be largely independent from other aspects of non-verbal development. Further, variability in ANS in infancy seems to, to some extent, reflect genotypic differences in the population.

Highlights

• Assessing 514 infant twins with eye tracking, we found that infants' sense of approximate numerosity is heritable and not positively associated with concurrent attentional, cognitive or motor abilities.
• These results have implications for our understanding of development of mathematical ability and the link between cognitive abilities early in postnatal life.

     

The feasibility of an automated eye-tracking-modified Fagan test of memory for human faces in younger Ugandan HIV-exposed children

Objective: The Fagan Test of Infant Intelligence (FTII) uses longer gaze length for unfamiliar versus familiar human faces to gauge visual-spatial encoding, attention, and working memory in infants. Our objective was to establish the feasibility of automated eye tracking with the FTII in HIV-exposed Ugandan infants.

Method: The FTII was administered to 31 perinatally HIV-exposed noninfected (HEU) Ugandan children 6–12 months of age (11 boys; M = 0.69 years, SD = 0.14; 19 girls; M = 0.79, SD = 0.15). A series of 10 different faces were presented (familiar face exposure for 25 s followed by a gaze preference trial of 15 s with both the familiar and unfamiliar faces). Tobii X2-30 infrared camera for pupil detection provided automated eye-tracking measures of gaze location and length during presentation of Ugandan faces selected to correspond to the gender, age (adult, child), face expression, and orientation of the original FTII. Eye-tracking gaze length for unfamiliar faces was correlated with performance on the Mullen Scales of Early Learning (MSEL).

Results: Infants gazed longer at the novel picture compared to familiar across 10 novelty preference trials. Better MSEL cognitive development was correlated with proportionately longer time spent looking at the novel faces (r(30) = 0.52, p = .004); especially for the Fine Motor Cognitive Sub-scale (r(30) = 0.54, p = .002).

Conclusion: Automated eye tracking in a human face recognition test proved feasible and corresponded to the MSEL composite cognitive development in HEU infants in a resource-constrained clinical setting. Eye tracking may be a viable means of enhancing the validity and accuracy of other neurodevelopmental measures in at-risk children in sub-Saharan Africa.     

The Early Motor Questionnaire (EMQ): A parental report measure of early motor development

Children's early motor skills are critical for development across language, social, and cognitive domains, and warrant close examination. However, examiner-administered motor assessments are time consuming and expensive. Parent-report questionnaires offer an efficient alternative, but validity of parent report is unclear and only few motor questionnaires exist. In this report, we use cross-sectional and longitudinal data to investigate the validity of parent report in comparison to two examiner-administered measures (Mullen Scales of Early Learning, MSEL; Peabody Developmental Motor Scales, PDMS-2), and introduce a new parent-report measure called the Early Motor Questionnaire (EMQ). Results indicate strong correlations between parent report on the EMQ and a child's age, robust concurrent and predictive validity of parent report with both the MSEL and PDMS-2, and good test–retest reliability of parent report on the EMQ. Together, our findings support the conclusion that parents provide dependable accounts of early motor and cognitive development.     

Cognitive and motor development in children with vertically transmitted HIV infection

This study was designed to examine mental and motor development in infants with vertically transmitted human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infection. Early neurodevelopment was examined in 25 young children with HIV infection acquired through vertical transmission. Compared with 25 children born to HIV-positive mothers but not infected with the virus, and after controlling for developmental risk factors, the HIV-infected group showed impairments in mental and motor development. Mental and motor development were assessed using the Bayley Scales of Infant Development. On the mental scale (MDI), the HIV-infected infants obtained significantly lower scores than the uninfected infants. On the performace scale (PDI), the HIV-infected infants obtained significantly lower standard scores than the uninfected infants. CT scan results were available for 20 of the HIV-infected children. CT abnormalities were associated with developmental delays, particularly for motor development. The results point to the importance of early abnormalities in myelination and of subcortical lesions of cognitive and motor development.     

COGNITIVE AND SOCIOEMOTIONAL FUNCTIONING AT 4½ YEARS IN CHILDREN BORN TO MOTHERS WHO HAVE RECEIVED TREATMENT FOR SUBSTANCE‐ABUSE PROBLEMS WHILE PREGNANT

Cognitive and socioemotional functioning at 4½ years of age were examined in children born to mothers with substance‐abuse problems (n = 22) recruited from residential treatment institutions while pregnant, and then compared to children born to mothers with mental health problems (n = 18) and children from a low‐risk group (n = 26). No significant group differences in cognitive functioning were found, but the children born to mothers with substance‐abuse problems showed more caregiver‐reported socioemotional problems than did the low‐risk children, like the children born to mothers with mental health problems. Birth weight had an effect on internalizing problems at 4½ years and mediated the relation between group and socioemotional problems, although not when controlling for caregiver education, single parenthood, and anxiety and depression. At 4½ years, 7 children born to mothers with substance‐abuse problems were placed in foster care. These children had lower birth weight and higher caregiver‐rated internalizing problems. In addition to emphasizing the importance of the quality of the prenatal environment, this study suggests that families with previous substance abuse are in need of long‐term follow‐up to address socioemotional problems and enhance further positive child cognitive development. The foster‐placed children may be in particular need of long‐term follow‐up.     

Relating the adolescent mother—child relationship to preschool outcomes

Two domains of potential risk in relation to the cognitive-linguistic outcomes of preschool children of adolescent mothers were investigated: (1) interactive features of the mother—child relationship and (2) aspects of the demographic context of parenting. Sixty-nine adolescent mothers and their children participated in evaluations when the children were 13, 20, 30, and 44 months old. Results indicated that the cognitive-linguistic development of children of adolescent mothers was affected by both the mother—child relationship and cumulative index of demographic risk. Specifically, positive maternal affect, mother—child verbal reciprocity, mother—child interactive fit, and cumulative demographic risk all contributed to explaining difficulties in preschool cognitive and linguistic functioning in children of adolescent mothers.     

Cognitive function of youths born to mothers with opioid and poly-substance abuse problems during pregnancy

Previous research has provided inconclusive evidence regarding the neuropsychological difficulties of children born to mothers partaking in opioid or poly-drug use during pregnancy. Little is known about how these children fare as they get older. The present longitudinal study includes follow-up data on 45 children born to mothers who used heroin and poly-drugs and a group of 48 children without prenatal drug exposure. Most of the drug-exposed youths were placed in permanent foster or adoptive homes before one year of age. The youths (ages 17 to 21) were administered 10 neuropsychological tests. The drug-exposed youths had cognitive and fine motor functions within the normal range compared to population norms but performed significantly worse than the non-exposed group. There were indications of generally lower cognitive functions rather than specific problems with executive functioning. Lower mean birthweight in the risk group (619 grams mean difference, p < .001) only partially mediated the group differences in cognitive functioning. There was a tendency for youths who had few and early changes in their caregivers or who were born to mothers who had used the least number of different drugs during pregnancy to have the best cognitive scores. The study indicates that youths born to mothers who used multiple drugs during pregnancy are vulnerable relative to their peers within a wide range of cognitive functions. The vulnerability seems to be related not only to the mother’s drug use during pregnancy but also to factors such as birthweight and unstable parental care during infancy.     

Effects of maternal postpartum depression in a well‐resourced sample: Early concurrent and long‐term effects on infant cognitive,language, and motor development

This study examined early and long‐term effects of maternal postpartum depression on cognitive, language, and motor development in infants of clinically depressed mothers. Participants were 83 mothers and their full‐term born children from the urban region of Copenhagen, Denmark. Of this group, 28 mothers were diagnosed with postnatal depression three to four months postpartum in a diagnostic interview. Cognitive, language, and motor development was assessed with the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development third edition, when the infants were 4 and 13 months of age. We found that maternal postpartum depression was associated with poorer cognitive development at infant age four months, the effect size being large (Cohen's d = 0.8) and with similar effects for boys and girls. At 13 months of age infants of clinical mothers did not differ from infants of non‐clinical mothers. At this time most (79%) of the clinical mothers were no longer, or not again, depressed. These results may indicate that maternal depression can have an acute, concurrent effect on infant cognitive development as early as at four months postpartum. At the same time, in the absence of other risk factors, this effect may not be enduring. The main weaknesses of the study include the relatively small sample size and that depression scores were only available for 35 of the non‐clinical mothers at 13 months.