Intelligence and behavior problems in 5-year-olds in relation to representational abilities in the second year of life.
Assessments of sensorimotor skill, play, language, and developmental level were administered to 20 preterm and 20 full-term infants during sessions at 13 1/2 and 22 months of age. At 5-year follow-up, children were tested with the Wechsler Preschool and Primary Scale of Intelligence (WIPPSI) and the Developmental Test of Visual-Motor Integration (VMI). Behavior problems were also assessed. At 5 years, the preterm sample showed slight delays in cognitive functioning. Measures of development and language at 13 1/2 and 22 months and relational play at 22 months were most predictive of cognitive outcome. Children with behavior problems at 5 years differed from those without problems in terms of their play and language skills. These data suggest that measures of development, particularly language development, and of play are predictive of later cognitive and behavioral functioning.
McDonald
M A
MA
Department of Psychiatry, UCLA School of Medicine 90024.
Sigman
M
M
Ungerer
J A
JA
D002653:Child Behavior Disorders / Q000175:diagnosis*; D002663:Child Language; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007234:Infant, Premature; D007360:Intelligence; D007804:Language Development; D008297:Male; D010988:Play and Playthings; D011237:Predictive Value of Tests; D011597:Psychomotor Performance; D012307:Risk Factors; D013997:Time Factors