Article assessment methods and criteria

¶ … Infant and caregiving factors affecting weight-for-age and motor development of full-term and premature infants at 1 year post-term. In this assessment, the purpose of the study, the background of the study, the study's main variables, population, research design, data collection and analysis, main findings of the study, discussion of findings, limitations of study, recommendations, generalizability, and the extent the findings can be utilized to address the guiding question of the course are all analyzed.

The purpose of this study was to examine the direct and indirect effects of infants' biological condition and experience, the caregiving environment, and caloric intake variables on two outcomes, weight-for-age and motor development, for 52 full-term and 47 premature infants at 12 months post-term age (Pridham, Brown, Clark, Sondel, & Green, 2002, p. 394).

This stated purpose is quite clear. In addition, it does fit with the clinical question asked for this literature, involving what parents need to know to enhance the development of outcomes for very low birth weight babies.

Background Section:

The literature regarding the topics concerning this study was adequately covered. These topics included: infant biologic condition, infant experience, and the caregiving environment. All literature reviewed was current, being written between the late 1980s and early 2000s. In the end, the literature clearly justified the study.

Main Variables and/or Phenomena of Interest:

The primary variables in this study included a variety of facets. The dependant variables included: infant nutritional intake, growth, and maternal responsiveness. The independent variables included: premature and full-term infants. These variables are clearly described. In addition, conceptual definitions are clearly given as well.

Population:

The population from which the sample was derived was infants that were recruited from family practice clinics, a pediatric primary care clinic, and a WIC Clinic. Premature infants were recruited shortly before their discharge from one of the three neonatal intensive care units. Given the research design, this was appropriate.

This sample is clearly described. Inclusion and exclusion criteria were noted. Exclusion criteria included mothers being under the age of 18 and had to be able speak and read English. The authors did note that 86% of families of premature babies were eligible for the study and 67% of families for full-term infants were eligible. This sample is appropriate given the purpose of the study.

Research Design:

This study was a quantitative study and utilized a non-experiment research design. Although the non-experiment design is often thought of as being the weakest research design when it comes to internal validity and causal assessment, in this study it was appropriate.

Data Collection:

Data collection occurred in a variety of ways. Motor development and nude weight were recorded by the researchers. Birth weight was collected from the hospital records. Mothers recorded what type of care was given as well as nutritional intake. These data collection methods were described in sufficient detail to permit replication and were appropriate, given the purpose of the study.

Data Analysis:

A path analysis, utilizing a noniterative procedure, two-stage least squares was used to estimate the parameters of the relationships among the variables. Three simultaneous regression equations were created to examine two models. The analysis methods were appropriate, because the use of an iteration procedure occasionally produces unstable estimates when the sample size is small, as it is in this study. The analysis of the data did help answer the questions posed in this study.

Main Findings of the Study:

It was found that the significantly smaller weight at birth for pre-term infants, in relation to full-term infants, still held true at 12 months. In addition, the severity of acute illness was greater for pre-term infants, in comparison to their full-term peers. The researchers also found that the more years education a mother had, the lower the infant's caloric intake. Lastly, for full-term infants, maternal responsiveness was the only variable that had a significant effect on motor development. These are clearly described and follow logically from the data analysis.

Discussion of Findings:

The discussion of findings is quite clear, following from findings. The discussion is instrumental in assisting the reader with interpreting the findings.

Limitations of the Study:

Limitations for this study include the sample that was utilized as well as the variable. The limitations are clearly described and include more complex and additional variables, including indirect and direct effects of infant and caregiving variables, through caloric intake on the two outcome variables. The researchers could have strengthened their design by including a larger sample size as well as included more complex variables.

Recommendations for Clinical Practice and Further Research:

The researchers not that further research is needed for better specification of the model of infant and caregiving factors and their nutrient intake-mediated contribution to growth and motor development. Because of the small sample size, it precluded inclusion in the model of infant and maternal factors that may contribute to these outcomes. Further research also needs to be performed on the effect of energy expenditure. These research recommendations are consistent with the findings. Clinical practice recommendations, however, were not included in this study.

Description of All Aspects of the Research:

The description of all aspects of the research does allow the reader to determine generalizability, of the study.

Extent the Findings Can be Utilized to Address the Guiding Question of the Course: