title: Development of an observational instrument to measure mother-infant separation post birth.
abstract: The importance of the timing, quality, and quantity of early maternal-infant contact has gained prominence over the years. However, no researcher has adequately documented the nature of maternal-infant contact and separation. This study assessed the psychometric properties of the Index of Mother-Infant Separation (IMIS), pronounced "I miss," which is a 37-item observational measure of the process of mother-infant contact or separation post birth. Assessment of reliability and validity of the IMIS was conducted using data collected in a randomized clinical trial with 224 healthy newborn infants assigned at 1 hour post birth to self-regulatory or routine nursery care (control) groups. Time-sampled observations occurred every 15 minutes. Content validity indices of the IMIS, determined by nine nationally known perinatal experts, were 77% to 100% for instrument items. Construct validity was supported through known-groups hypothesis testing (p < .0001). Interrater reliability was from 86% to 90%. The IMIS is a valid observational measure of maternal contact when raters are trained to score it reliably.
authors.affiliation: Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, USA. gene.anderson@case.edu
authors.forename: Gene Cranston
authors.initials: GC
authors.lastname: Anderson
authors.forename: Doreen
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Radjenovic
authors.forename: Sheau-Huey
authors.initials: SH
authors.lastname: Chiu
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Conlon
authors.forename: Ann E
authors.initials: AE
authors.lastname: Lane
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D005247:Feeding Behavior; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D018730:Infant Behavior / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008425:Maternal Behavior / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D019370:Observation; D015588:Observer Variation; D049590:Postpartum Period / Q000502:physiology / Q000523:psychology; D011580:Psychological Techniques; D016032:Randomized Controlled Trials as Topic; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012386:Rooming-in Care; D015144:Southeastern United States; D013037:Spatial Behavior