Lazarus Molly F, Marchman Virginia A, Feldman Heidi M, Scala Melissa, Travis Katherine E
Department of Pediatrics, Division of Developmental-Behavioral Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.
Department of Pediatrics, Burke-Cornell Medical Research Institute, Weill Medical College, Cornell University, New York, New York, USA.
Infancy. 2025 May-Jun;30(3):e70024. doi: 10.1111/infa.70024.
Infants from lower-socioeconomic (SES) backgrounds are at increased risk for compromised developmental outcomes compared to infants from higher-SES backgrounds. Features of caregiver-child interactions have been proposed as mechanisms through which SES-related factors are associated with child outcomes. This study assessed whether rates of tactile interactions between neonates and family members (skin-to-skin caregiving) served as a mechanism, that is, statistically mediated, SES-related developmental disparities in infants born preterm (n = 95). Infants from lower-SES backgrounds experienced less skin-to-skin care and scored lower on developmental assessments than infants from higher-SES backgrounds. Infants who experienced more skin-to-skin care had better outcomes than infants who experienced less skin-to-skin care. Critically, the direct association between SES and outcomes was significantly reduced after controlling for skin-to-skin care rates. Thus, SES-related disparities were linked to caregiving experiences as early as the neonatal period. Parallel analyses on non-skin-to-skin tactile care (swaddled holding, touch, and massage) revealed no associations, highlighting the specificity of skin-to-skin caregiving. These findings make substantial contributions to developmental theory and offer concrete and scalable recommendations for intervention.
与来自高社会经济地位（SES）背景的婴儿相比，来自低社会经济地位背景的婴儿出现发育不良结果的风险更高。照顾者与儿童互动的特征被认为是SES相关因素与儿童发育结果之间产生关联的机制。本研究评估了新生儿与家庭成员之间的触觉互动频率（肌肤相亲式照料）是否作为一种机制，即在统计学上介导了早产婴儿（n = 95）中与SES相关的发育差异。与来自高社会经济地位背景的婴儿相比，来自低社会经济地位背景的婴儿接受肌肤相亲式照料的次数较少，并且在发育评估中的得分较低。接受肌肤相亲式照料较多的婴儿比接受此类照料较少的婴儿发育结果更好。至关重要的是，在控制了肌肤相亲式照料频率后，SES与发育结果之间的直接关联显著降低。因此，SES相关差异早在新生儿期就与照料经历有关。对非肌肤相亲式触觉照料（襁褓怀抱、触摸和按摩）的平行分析未发现关联，突出了肌肤相亲式照料的特殊性。这些发现对发育理论做出了重大贡献，并为干预提供了具体且可扩展的建议。
