Do mothers' play behaviors moderate the associations between socioeconomic status and 24-month neurocognitive outcomes of toddlers born preterm or with low birth weight?
OBJECTIVE
We examined whether neonatal risks and maternal scaffolding (i.e., task changes and flexibility) during a 16-month post-term play interaction moderated the association between socioeconomic status (SES), visual-spatial processing and emerging working memory assessed at 24 months post-term among 75 toddlers born preterm or low birth weight.


METHODS
SES and neonatal risk data were collected at hospital discharge and mother-child play interactions were observed at 16-month post-term. General cognitive abilities, verbal/nonverbal working memory and visual-spatial processing data were collected at 24 months.


RESULTS
Neonatal risks did not moderate the associations between SES and 24-month outcomes. However, lower mother-initiated task changes were related to better 24-month visual-spatial processing among children living in higher SES homes. Mothers' flexible responses to child initiated task changes similarly moderated the impact of SES on 24-month visual-spatial processing.


CONCLUSIONS
Our results suggest that mothers' play behaviors differentially relate to child outcomes depending on household SES.
Dilworth-Bart
Janean E
JE
Department of Human Development and Family Studies, University of Wisconsin, 1305 Linden Drive, Madison, WI 53706-1523, USA. jedilworth@wisc.edu
Poehlmann
Julie A
JA
Miller
Kyle E
KE
Hilgendorf
Amy E
AE
D001288:Attention; D002657:Child Development; D002675:Child, Preschool; D003071:Cognition; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007230:Infant, Low Birth Weight / Q000523:psychology*; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008570:Memory, Short-Term; D009034:Mother-Child Relations; D009035:Mothers / Q000523:psychology; D009483:Neuropsychological Tests; D010988:Play and Playthings / Q000523:psychology*; D047928:Premature Birth / Q000523:psychology*; D012923:Social Class; D012931:Social Environment