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Early receptive and productive language skills in preterm and full-term 8-month-old infants
M B Stevenson1, M A Roach, L A Leavitt
1Waisman Center on Mental Retardation and Human Development, University of Wisconsin, Madison 53705.
Insights
This study found that preterm infants in middle-class homes show excellent language development. Early receptive language skills were linked to cognitive abilities, sociability, and preterm birth status.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Pediatrics
- Linguistics
Background:
- Preterm birth can impact infant development, including language acquisition.
- Socioeconomic status is a known confounder in studies of preterm infants.
- Understanding early language predictors is crucial for timely intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine early receptive and productive language skills in preterm low birthweight infants compared to full-term normal birthweight infants.
- To identify predictors of language development in these infant groups.
- To assess the language development prognosis for preterm infants from middle-class backgrounds.
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal study comparing 19 preterm and 19 full-term infants.
- Matched mothers on educational levels to control for socioeconomic status.
- Regression analyses to determine predictors of infant language skills at 8 months corrected age.
Main Results:
- Receptive language skills were positively associated with higher cognitive performance, greater sociability, and preterm birth status.
- Productive language skills were associated with higher cognitive performance.
- Infant birth status did not negatively predict language outcomes in this cohort.
Conclusions:
- Preterm infants from middle-class homes demonstrate strong early language development.
- Cognitive skills and sociability are key factors in language acquisition for both preterm and full-term infants.
- The prognosis for language development in preterm infants in supportive environments is excellent.
Abstract:
Early receptive and productive language skills were examined for preterm low birthweight infants and full-term normal birthweight infants from middle-class homes. Nineteen preterm infants and 19 full-term infants were observed in a laboratory setting at the gestationally corrected age of 8 months. To avoid the frequent confound between prematurity and low socioeconomic status, mothers of the two groups of infants were matched on educational levels. Regression analyses were used to assess the relative influence of infant cognitive skills, infant sociability, infant birth status, and the mothers' language input as possible predictors of infant receptive language and vocal behavior. Receptive language skills were associated with higher cognitive performance, greater sociability, and preterm birth. Productive language skills were associated with higher cognitive performance. On the basis of this research, the prognosis for language development in preterm infants raised in middle-class homes appears to be excellent.