Related Experiment Video
Updated: Apr 26, 2026

Assessment and Evaluation of the High Risk Neonate: The NICU Network Neurobehavioral Scale
Published on: August 25, 2014
Mother-child interactions in the NICU: relevance and implications for later parenting
Emily D Gerstein1, Julie Poehlmann-Tynan2, Roseanne Clark3
1Waisman Center, Waisman Center, Human Development and Family Studies, and Department of Psychiatry, School of Medicine and Public Health, University of Wisconsin-Madison Gerstein2@waisman.wisc.edu.
Objective:
This study examined the feasibility of observing mother-child interactions in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU), whether NICU interactions related to later interactions, and how interactions related to child and maternal characteristics.
Methods:
The sample included 130 preterm infants and their mothers, observed in a feeding interaction in the NICU. Dyads were observed through 36 months postterm.
Results:
Observed maternal positive affective involvement and verbalizations in the NICU were associated with the same parenting behaviors at 24 months, social support, socioeconomic status, and being born in the late preterm period. Maternal negative affect and behavior were unrelated to later maternal negativity or child and maternal characteristics.
Conclusions:
Positive parenting assessed in the NICU appears related to later parenting interaction quality, suggesting early assessment is possible. Maternal negative affect and behavior toward children may not consistently emerge until later in development.
More Related Videos
05:04A Common Marmoset Model of Mother-Infant Intervention for Breastfeeding Disorders in the Presence of Paternal Inhibition and Maternal Neglect
Published on: September 22, 2023
11:50Clinical Practice Protocol of Creative Music Therapy for Preterm Infants and Their Parents in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit
Published on: January 7, 2020
Related Concept Videos
Relationship with Parents: Attachment
Parental Care
Attachment
Socioemotional Development during Infancy
Primary Temperament Types
The Nativist Approach
Nursing Interventions II: Selecting and Classifying the Nursing Interventions