ABSTRACT
Factors that influence school achievement in very-low-birth-weight (< 1,500 g) children were investigated at the completion of first grade. The subjects were 71 children and their primary caregivers. Thirty-nine children were very low birth weight (VLBW) and 32 were normal birth weight (NBW). After controlling for birth weight status, over one third of the variance in children's school achievement was accounted for by the age of the child's mother when she began childbearing. Birth weight status accounted for significant amounts of variance in information processing skills. Significantly more children in the VLBW group required special services and fewer were promoted to second grade, although the difference was not significant.
Subject(s)
Achievement , Infant, Low Birth Weight , Birth Weight , Child , Female , Humans , Infant, Newborn , Male , Mothers/statistics & numerical data , Observer Variation , Prospective Studies , Psychological Tests , Regression Analysis , Social Environment , Socioeconomic FactorsABSTRACT
The purpose of this study was to investigate parental perception of vulnerability, parental subjective stress concerning children's premature birth, and child temperament in families of very low birth weight (VLBW) and normal birth weight (NBW) children. The subjects were 39 VLBW children and 30 NBW 7-year-old children and their caregivers. Data on child temperament and parental perception of vulnerability was provided by the 69 families. Families of the VLBW group rated their degree of current stress concerning their children's premature birth. There were no differences between the NBW and VLBW caregivers in their perceptions of their child's vulnerability status. Caregivers of VLBW children had significantly lower scores on degree of subjective stress specific to the premature birth than the value reported on the standardization population. Child temperament made a significant contribution to parental perception of child vulnerability status in both VLBW and NBW parents.