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Nighttime sleep-wake patterns and self-soothing from birth to one year of age: a longitudinal intervention study
Melissa M Burnham1, Beth L Goodlin-Jones, Erika E Gaylor
1Department of Psychiatry, UC Davis Medical Center, Sacromento, CA 95817, USA.
Insights
Infant self-soothing at 12 months is influenced by decreasing time out of the crib, quiet sleep at birth, and parental response times. A novel sleep aid showed no significant effects on infant sleep or self-soothing behaviors.
Area of Science:
- Developmental psychology
- Pediatric sleep science
Background:
- Longitudinal sleep-wake patterns in solitary-sleeping infants (1-12 months) were examined.
- The study investigated the impact of a novel sleep aid on infant sleep and self-soothing.
- Predictive factors for self-soothing behavior at 12 months were identified.
Purpose of the Study:
- To describe the developmental trajectory of infant sleep-wake patterns.
- To assess the effects of a novel sleep aid on infant sleep and self-soothing.
- To determine predictors of self-soothing behavior at 12 months.
Main Methods:
- Eighty infants' sleep-wake patterns were monitored using videosomnography and questionnaires.
- Data were collected at five time points during the first year of life.
- Predictive factors for self-soothing were analyzed using a transactional model.
Main Results:
- Replicated known sleep-wake developmental changes, noting significant individual variability.
- The novel sleep aid did not demonstrate major effects on infant sleep or self-soothing.
- Key predictors of 12-month self-soothing included less time out of crib, high birth quiet sleep, and longer parental response times.
Conclusions:
- Preliminary support for the transactional model of infant development was found.
- Infant and parental factors interact to shape the development of self-soothing behaviors.
- Understanding these interactions is crucial for supporting infant sleep development.
Background:
The objectives of this study were to: (1) describe the longitudinal development of sleep-wake patterns of solitary-sleeping infants from 1 to 12 months of age, (2) identify effects on sleep patterns and on self-soothing behaviors of introducing a novel sleep aid, and (3) identify predictive factors of self-soothing at 12 months using a transactional model as a guide.
Methods:
Eighty infants' nighttime sleep-wake patterns and associated variables were studied at 5 times across the first year of life using videosomnography and questionnaires.
Results:
Sleep-wake state developmental changes, as reported in investigations of infant sleep, were replicated, although a great deal of individual variability in the development of all sleep-related variables was noted. No major effects on sleep or on self-soothing behavior were evident from the introduction of the novel sleep aid. Three variables were identified as significant predictors of self-soothing at 12 months: decreasing amounts of time spent out of crib across the first year, high levels of quiet sleep at birth, and longer parental response times to infant awakenings at 3 months.
Conclusions:
These data lend preliminary support for the transactional model and suggest that infant and parental factors interact to influence the development of self-soothing.
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