Vrantsidis Daphne M, Benkart Rebekah A, Neel Mary Lauren, de Silva Aryanne, Maitre Nathalie L, Taylor H Gerry
Department of Pediatrics, University of Calgary, Canada.
Abigail Wexner Research Institute, Nationwide Children's Hospital, USA.
J Pediatr Psychol. 2023 Mar 20;48(3):283-292. doi: 10.1093/jpepsy/jsac090.
Children born very preterm (VPT; gestational age [GA] <31 weeks) have robust school readiness difficulties relative to children born full-term (FT; GA ≥37 weeks). This study examined whether four aspects of parental well-being and behavior-distress, harshness, responsiveness and positive control, and cognitive stimulation-were linked to school readiness in a sample of children born VPT <31 weeks GA and whether these characteristics similarly impact VPT and FT children.
Parents of 4-year-olds born VPT (n = 55) and FT (n = 38) reported on parental distress, behavior, and cognitive stimulation. Children's cognition, executive function, motor skills, preacademic abilities, and behavior were assessed via neuropsychological tests and parent-report questionnaires.
For both groups of children, higher psychological distress and harshness were associated with more behavior problems, and more cognitive stimulation was associated with higher scores on tests of cognitive, motor, and preacademic abilities. More parental distress was associated with lower cognitive ability only for children born VPT and more harshness was associated with lower preacademic skills only for children born FT.
Identifying modifiable family factors associated with school readiness in children born VPT is essential for informing family-based interventions to improve school readiness in this population. Findings suggest that distress, harshness, and cognitive stimulation may be reasonable targets for interventions to improve school readiness in children born VPT.
与足月儿（FT；胎龄[GA]≥37周）相比，极早产儿（VPT；胎龄[GA]<31周）在入学准备方面存在明显困难。本研究调查了父母幸福感和行为的四个方面——苦恼、严厉、反应性和积极控制以及认知刺激——是否与GA<31周的VPT出生儿童的入学准备相关，以及这些特征对VPT和FT儿童的影响是否相似。
VPT出生的4岁儿童（n = 55）和FT出生的4岁儿童（n = 38）的父母报告了父母的苦恼、行为和认知刺激情况。通过神经心理测试和父母报告问卷对儿童的认知、执行功能、运动技能、学前能力和行为进行评估。
对于两组儿童，较高的心理苦恼和严厉程度与更多的行为问题相关，更多的认知刺激与认知、运动和学前能力测试的更高分数相关。仅对于VPT出生的儿童，更多的父母苦恼与较低的认知能力相关，仅对于FT出生的儿童，更多的严厉程度与较低的学前技能相关。
确定与VPT出生儿童入学准备相关的可改变家庭因素对于为改善该人群入学准备的家庭干预提供信息至关重要。研究结果表明，苦恼、严厉和认知刺激可能是改善VPT出生儿童入学准备干预的合理目标。
