A total of 60 infants of 7 weeks of age were tested in a habituation-dishabituation looking procedure to determine if they could discriminate between infant-directed talk (IDT) and adult-directed talk (ADT) uttered by the same speaker. One group of 12 infants was habituated to a female speaker's ADT and dishabituated to the same speaker's IDT,…

The bibliography lists books and journal articles which are available on loan (to Illinois residents only) from the Illinois Birth to Three Clearinghouse. The 79 items listed focus on many aspects of autism, such as diagnosis, possible genetic links, social and pragmatic deficits, sleep problems, developmental therapy, drug therapy, behavior…

A total of 80 infants who were 7 months old were asked to discriminate happy and surprised expressions based on compound or component changes in the eyes, mouth, or entire face. Four stimuli were employed: black and white photographs of a Caucasian female modeling happy and surprised expressions, and two hybrid expressions created by transposing…

In an investigation of 1-year-olds' ability to plan a sequence of steps, 20 infants were administered a compound means-ends problem. In a planning condition, a barrier was placed in front of a cloth at the far end of which was placed one end of a long string. A toy was fastened to the other end of the string and was placed on a table at some…

Public concern about day care now focuses on infants and toddlers who began receiving out-of-home care before they had established attachments to their parents. In 1987, public conscience was inflamed by a series of reports in the popular media and the professional literature that underscored potential risks inherent in out-of-home care intiated…

This document presents mortality statistics for 1985 for the entire United States. Data analysis and discussion of these factors is included: death and death rates; death rates by age, sex, and race; expectation of life at birth and at specified ages; causes of death; infant mortality; and maternal mortality. Highlights reported include: (1) the…

Observations were made of the incidence of pointing behavior among infants differing in age when a radio-controlled truck entered the room in which mother and infant were seated. Infants' reactions over 5 to 6 minutes were recorded on videotape. Recordings were analyzed to establish the incidence of pointing, handedness of pointing, whether…

A scheme for classifying attachment patterns is proposed that retains important elements of Ainsworth's system, but extends it to allow for the inclusion of more deviant patterns of behavior. The proposed scheme asserts that attachment relationships can be ordered on a continuum of felt security based upon an organizational interpretation of the…

This document reports on the feasibility of requiring private insurance carriers to provide coverage of the pregnancy-related expenses of dependent minors and newborn care expenses of their offspring in Texas. The document relates the history of legislative interest in the topic of teenage pregnancy. The report states that although private medical…

The purposes of this study were to investigate (1) the level of development of four target vocal and gestural symbols (Doggie, Cup, Car, and Fiffin, a novel concept), and (2) the relationship of symbolic maturity to the use of symbols in combinations. Thirty infants (15 boys and 15 girls), between 82 and 91 weeks of age, were observed for…

Stages in the development of art expression in infants and toddlers are briefly described and illustrated in this paper. Following this overview, suggestions are made about ways to introduce infants and toddlers to various developmentally appropriate media and how to support the artistic efforts of very young children. Materials recommended…

This study was designed to investigate whether or not degree of child maltreatment is related in some meaningful way to the interactional characteristics of the mother/infant dyad and to the infant's developmental status. A group of 53 mother/infant dyads was divided into five diagnostic groups: nonaccidental trauma combined with…

This paper outlines a methodology for assessing change in the parent-child relationship between infancy and toddlerhood. Specifically, the paper focuses on the utilization of the same or comparable tasks to observe and rate parent-child interactions at infancy and toddlerhood, and points out the scoring modifications that proved helpful in…

The interaction of 12 hearing-impaired children (13-16 months old) and their caregivers was examined. Videotapes of mother-child interactions were recorded during play with a range of toys. Analysis focused on mothers' attention controls, action controls, prohibitives, imperatives, and interrogatives as well as nonverbal controls. Results revealed…

Five deaf infants with hearing parents enrolled in a parent-infant intervention program using total communication were videotaped during free play sessions with their parents. Videotapes of each child at program entry and program exit were analyzed. The functions of children's gestures, pointing responses, communicative vocalizations, and signs…