International research, while mostly conducted in high-income countries, repeatedly states that parents of premature infants have increased needs and require additional information and varied support channels after the infant's initial discharge from hospital. However, the perceived self-reported needs of parents concerned with the caregiving of…

Presents a framework delineating four influences on infant and family development: personality, social interaction, role, and ecology. Documents stable characteristics of parents' personality and marriage that affect family development and infant soothability. (Author/CB)

Presents an experiential-educational approach to families with infants integrating dance and movement therapy with family therapy theories and techniques. Nonverbal techniques are the only possible methods of working directly with infants present with their parents in these workshops. The focus is on negotiations and exchanges of feelings in…

Research findings are reviewed concerning infants' abilities to discriminate parents from other social stimuli during the first 6 months of life. The term "discrimination" is used to signify the ability of infants to respond differentially to two or more social stimuli. Studies reviewed are categorized in terms of the visual, auditory,…

Analyzed data from 11 studies of concordance of mother/father attachment to an infant based on the Strange Situation. Found that security of attachment, type of insecurity, and subcategory classification of security to one parent depended on the other parent. Discussed parenting styles and infant temperament. (BC)

Reviews selected research on the beneficial effects of tactile stimulation on infants. Examines the results of studies with animals, preterm infants, cocaine- and HIV-exposed preterm infants, and normal full-term infants. Briefly discusses caregiving implications and offers suggestions on how caregivers can incorporate tactile stimulation in…

Sketches the outlines of a life-span perspective on competence development, which focuses on beliefs about one's potential for producing desirable outcomes. The concern is with the nature and implications of individual differences in perceptions of personal agency and likely origins and development of the perceptions in the early years. (Author/BB)