Hodsoll John, Pickles Andrew, Bozicevic Laura, Supraja Thirumalai Ananthanpillai, Hill Jonathan, Chandra Prabha S, Sharp Helen
Department of Biostatistics, Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology and Neuroscience, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
Department of Primary Care and Mental Health, Institute of Population Health, University of Liverpool, Liverpool, United Kingdom.
Front Psychol. 2022 Mar 23;13:852618. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.852618. eCollection 2022.
Differences in infant caregiving behavior between cultures have long been noted, although the quantified comparison of touch-based caregiving using uniform standardized methodology has been much more limited. The Parent-Infant Caregiving Touch scale (PICTS) was developed for this purpose and programming effects of early parental tactile stimulation (stroking) on infant hypothalamic-pituitary adrenal (HPA)-axis functioning (stress-response system), cardiovascular regulation and behavioral outcomes, similar to that reported in animals, have now been demonstrated. In order to inform future studies examining such programming effects in India, we first aimed to describe and examine, using parametric and non-parametric item-response methods, the item-response frequencies and characteristics of responses on the PICTS, and evidence for cross-cultural differential item functioning (DIF) in the United Kingdom (UK) and India. Second, in the context of a cultural favoring of male children in India, we also aimed to test the association between the sex of the infant and infant "stroking" in both cultural settings. The PICTS was administered at 8-12 weeks postpartum to mothers in two-cohort studies: The Wirral Child Health and Development Study, United Kingdom ( = 874) and the Bangalore Child Health and Development Study, India ( = 395). Mokken scale analysis, parametric item-response analysis, and structural equation modeling for categorical items were used. Items for two dimensions, one for stroking behavior and one for holding behavior, could be identified as meeting many of the criteria required for Mokken scales in the United Kingdom, only the stroking scale met these criteria in the sample from India. Thus, while a comparison between the two cultures was possible for the stroking construct, comparisons for the other non-verbal parenting constructs within PICTS were not. Analyses revealed higher rates of early stroking being reported for the United Kingdom than India, but no sex differences in rates in either country and no differential sex difference by culture. We conclude that PICTS items can be used reliably in both countries to conduct further research on the role of early tactile stimulation in shaping important child development outcomes.
不同文化间婴儿照料行为的差异早已为人所注意，不过，运用统一标准化方法对基于触摸的照料进行量化比较的情况则更为有限。为此开发了亲子照料触摸量表（PICTS），并且现已证明，早期父母触觉刺激（抚摸）对婴儿下丘脑 - 垂体 - 肾上腺（HPA）轴功能（应激反应系统）、心血管调节及行为结果的编程效应，与在动物研究中报告的情况类似。为了给未来在印度检验此类编程效应的研究提供信息，我们首先旨在使用参数和非参数项目反应方法，描述并检验PICTS上的项目反应频率及反应特征，以及英国和印度跨文化差异项目功能（DIF）的证据。其次，鉴于印度存在重男轻女的文化倾向，我们还旨在检验两种文化背景下婴儿性别与婴儿“抚摸”之间的关联。在两项队列研究中，对产后8 - 12周的母亲施测了PICTS：英国的威尔拉尔儿童健康与发展研究（n = 874）和印度的班加罗尔儿童健康与发展研究（n = 395）。使用了莫肯量表分析、参数项目反应分析以及分类项目的结构方程模型。可以确定，有两个维度的项目，一个用于抚摸行为，一个用于怀抱行为，在英国符合莫肯量表所需的许多标准，而在印度样本中只有抚摸量表符合这些标准。因此，虽然对于抚摸结构可以在两种文化之间进行比较，但对于PICTS内的其他非言语养育结构则无法进行比较。分析显示，英国报告的早期抚摸发生率高于印度，但两国在抚摸发生率上均无性别差异，也没有因文化导致的性别差异。我们得出结论，PICTS项目在两国均可可靠地用于进一步研究早期触觉刺激在塑造重要儿童发育结果中的作用。
