ABSTRACT
This chapter examines the development of parent-infant interaction skills as well as important elements of the interaction process. It describes Functional and dysfunctional interactive patterns and their effects on development. The chapter discusses interaction measurement approaches and assessment scales. A number of assessments have been developed to measure parent-infant interactions. Most scales employ direct behavioral observations of molar or molecular categories of interactive behaviors. Molar categories are broad categories of behavior such as sensitivity and responsiveness within the dyad. More discrete units of behavior such as eye contact, gaze, or smile are termed molecular units. The eight parent-infant scales described in this chapter are the Family-Administered Neonatal Activities, Parent Behavior Progression, Maternal Behavior Rating Scale, Parent/Caregiver Involvement Scale, Nursing Child Assessment Teaching and Feeding Scales, Greenspan-Lieberman Observation System for Assessment of Caregiver-Infant Interaction During Semistructured Play, Mother-Infant Play Interaction Scale, and Observation of Communicative Interaction.
