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Very low birth weight infants (< 1501 g) at double risk
L Smith1, S E Ulvund, R Lindemann
1Institute of Psychology, University of Oslo, Norway.
Insights
Infants at double risk showed developmental delays in intellectual skills and language by ages 2-3. Assessing cognitive processing and socioeconomic status may better predict developmental delays than medical factors alone.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Pediatric Medicine
- Cognitive Science
Background:
- Very-low-birth-weight infants are at increased risk for developmental challenges.
- Fagan's model of intelligence posits that cognitive processing and environmental information interact to form knowledge.
- Identifying infants at high risk for developmental delay is crucial for early intervention.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the developmental outcomes of very-low-birth-weight infants identified as being at double risk.
- To evaluate the utility of Fagan's model in predicting developmental outcomes in this population.
- To compare the predictive value of cognitive processing and socioeconomic status against traditional medical models for detecting developmental delay.
Main Methods:
- A cohort of 105 very-low-birth-weight infants was assessed at 2 and 3 years of age.
- Cognitive processing ability was measured using the Fagan Test of Infant Intelligence.
- Parental socioeconomic status (SES) served as a proxy for culturally provided information, and knowledge was assessed via psychometric tests.
Main Results:
- Infants classified as double risk consistently demonstrated delays in intellectual skills and language development compared to those not at double risk.
- Cognitive processing ability and parental SES were significant factors in developmental outcomes.
- The combined assessment of processing ability and SES showed greater efficacy in identifying developmental delay.
Conclusions:
- The findings support Fagan's model, indicating that cognitive processing and environmental factors are key determinants of knowledge acquisition.
- Assessing cognitive processing ability and parental socioeconomic status offers a more robust approach to identifying developmental delay in high-risk infants than medical factors alone.
- Early identification through these combined measures can facilitate timely interventions for at-risk infants.
Abstract:
This study examines the outcome at ages 2 and 3 years of very-low-birth-weight infants (N = 105) at double risk. Double risk was defined with reference to Fagan's model of intelligence. According to this model, cognitive-processing ability and culturally provided information produce knowledge. The Fagan Test of Infant Intelligence was used to assess processing ability, whereas parental socioeconomic status (SES) was used as an indicator of available information. Knowledge was measured by means of well-known psychometric tests of young children's abilities. Children at double risk were consistently delayed with respect to knowledge of intellectual skills and language as compared with children who were not at double risk. The data suggest that the assessment of processing ability and parental SES may provide a better foundation for detecting developmental delay than does a medical main-effect model.