ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses five themes: importance to infant wellbeing of events and experiences during pregnancy and birth; early child development; service provision; service planning; and parent education and support. Research findings contribute to our knowledge of many aspects of pre-and perinatal development and their outcomes. Increasing scientific knowledge especially in the fields of neurobiology, developmental psychopathology and epidemiological outcomes studies makes it clear that social disadvantage and adversity have direct negative impacts on child development. Assessment of early childhood outcomes should be linked to program and policy data, promote a trans-disciplinary science of human development, and trans late this science into early childhood development (ECD) programs and policies that foster healthy development. Changes in children's environment and relationships in the first year of life can have major and lasting effects, for good or ill, on their development in the long term.
