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Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
19:15

Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale

Published on: August 25, 2014

Daytime sleep and parenting interactions in infants born preterm

A J Schwichtenberg1, Thomas F Anders, Melissa Vollbrecht

  • 1Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, MIND Institute, University of California, Davis, CA 95817, USA. ajschwichtenberg@ucdavis.edu

Journal of Developmental and Behavioral Pediatrics : JDBP
|October 28, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Infants born preterm who napped more had more positive maternal interactions. More naps in infants predicted better maternal interactions later, showing a bidirectional link between infant sleep and parenting.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Pediatric Sleep Medicine
  • Maternal-Child Interaction

Background:

  • Nighttime parent-child interactions are known to influence nighttime sleep.
  • Daytime sleep behaviors in infants are an understudied area.
  • Transactional processes between sleep and parenting are crucial for development.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To examine the longitudinal associations between infant daytime sleep and maternal play interactions.
  • To explore concurrent and time-lagged relationships in preterm infants.
  • To understand the bidirectional influence of sleep and interaction.

Main Methods:

  • Longitudinal study of 134 families with preterm infants.
  • Data collected at NICU discharge and 4, 9, 24 months postterm.
  • Methods included sleep logs, sociodemographic data, and video-taped play sessions.

Main Results:

  • Infants with more naps had mothers with more positive/communicative interactions at 4, 9, and 24 months.
  • More infant naps predicted more optimal maternal interactive behaviors later.
  • Maternal negative affect predicted increased infant daytime sleep later.

Conclusions:

  • Daytime sleep significantly influences daytime parent-child interactions.
  • Supports a longitudinal, bidirectional relationship between infant sleep and maternal interactions.
  • Highlights the importance of studying daytime naps in early childhood development.
Abstract

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