Interaction between high‐risk infants and their mothers: The NCAST as an assessment tool

Abstract

Using the NCAST Feeding, Teaching, and HOME Scales, we tested 37 high‐risk infants matched with 37 healthy infants on gender, race, and socioeconomic status. All infants were 8 months old. A one‐to‐one matched case‐control design was used to determine whether increased risk of impaired mother—infant interaction was associated with case status. Conditional logistic regression was used to control for possible confounding and to evaluate interaction. Of the 37 high‐risk infant—mother dyads, 25 had a low score on one or more scales while only 10 of the control dyads had a low score on one or more of the three scales. The Feeding scale was the only assessment in which the association found in the univariate analysis persisted after adjusting for other variables. Because of its low cost and high efficiency, the NCAST battery appears to be valuable for directing more specialized intervention services in a high‐risk infant population.

A pediatric screening instrument to detect problematic infant–parent interactions: Initial reliability and validity in a sample of high‐ and low‐risk infants

“…Although these interventions are promising, techniques that reliably and validly detect the signs of early interactional problems are needed (Munson & Odom, 1996). The pioneering work of Barnard and colleagues suggested that brief observations of parent and child in semistructured situations such as feeding or teaching were reliable, and could identify infants who were at increased risk for poor outcomes (Barnard, 1994;Farel, Freeman, Keenan, & Huber, 1991). We chose to expand on this seminal work by focusing specifically on the bidirectional nature of parentinfant interaction, and structure the observation around a brief game that could be conducted during a pediatric exam without the use of additional materials.…”

Assessment of Behavioral and Emotional Problems in Infancy: A Systematic Review

“…Studies on the reliability and validity of the PCI scales have demonstrated high interrater reliability (Bryne and Keefe 2003), moderate convergent validity with other scales of child development and parent–child interaction (Bryne and Keefe 2003; Sumner and Spietz 1994), predictive validity by discriminating between lowand high-risk populations (Farel et al 2007; Schiffman et al 2003), and treatment sensitivity (French et al 1998; Leitch 1999). In order to administer the NCAST PCI scales, it is a requirement to complete a training course sanctioned by NCAST, and examiners must demonstrate at least 85% interrater reliability for clinical purposes and 90% interrater reliability for research purposes.…”

Supporting Parents: Can Intervention Improve Parent-Child Relationships?

“…Such exploration fosters cognitive and social skill development (Ainsworth & Bell, 1974;Letourneau, 1997;McCain & Mustard, 1999;Shore, 1997). Early parent-infant interactive experiences are linked to children's later IQ (McCain & Mustard, 1999;Sternberg & Williams, 1995) and may provide the model for later peer relationships (Coates & Lewis, 1984;Farel, Freeman, Keenan, & Huber, 1991;McCain & Mustard, 1999;Schaefer & Edgarton, 1985).…”