ERIC Number: ED496852
Record Type: Non-Journal
Publication Date: 2005-Jul
Pages: 16
Abstractor: ERIC
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: N/A
EISSN: N/A
Available Date: N/A
Clinical Interventions to Enhance Infant Mental Health: A Selective Review
Zeanah, Paula D.; Stafford, Brian; Zeanah, Charles H.
UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities
The unique focus of infant mental health interventions is most often the caregiver-infant relationship, rather than the traditional approach of focusing specifically on the child or caregiver. Because a relationship approach to assessment and treatment is new, the development of evidence-based approaches is still in its own infancy. Furthermore, as described by Shonkoff and Phillips (2000), there are a number of challenges in developing the evidence-base for infant mental health interventions. Few interventions approach state of the art methodology to determine their short- and long-term effects (e.g., randomized controlled trials), but a number of promising approaches have shown significant improvements on social-emotional development and/or parent-infant relationships. This brief describes selected programs that represent current approaches in infant mental health. This is not an exhaustive review; rather, illustrative programs are selected that: (1) focus on the parent-infant relationship as a target of intervention; (2) have been implemented in primary, focused, or tertiary care settings, with low to high risk families; and (3) demonstrate evidence of short or long term improvement in parent-infant relationships. (Contains 4 exhibits.) [This publication was produced by the National Center for Infant and Early Childhood Health Policy, an active collaboration between the UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities, the Association of Maternal and Child Health Programs (AMCHP), the Women and Children's Health Policy Center at the Johns Hopkins University Bloomberg School of Public Health, and the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP).]
Descriptors: Child Health, Mental Health, Infants, Mental Health Programs, Intervention, Parent Child Relationship, Program Descriptions, Risk, Program Effectiveness, Outcomes of Treatment, Delivery Systems, Child Development, Health Promotion, Professional Development, Preschool Education, Child Care Centers
UCLA Center for Healthier Children, Families and Communities. 1100 Glendon Avenue Suite 860, Los Angeles, CA 90024. Tel: 310-794-2583; Fax: 310-794-2728; e-mail: chcfc@ucla.edu; Web site: http://www.healthychild.ucla.edu
Publication Type: Information Analyses
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: Health Resources and Services Administration (DHHS/PHS), Washington, DC. Maternal and Child Health Bureau.
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A
Author Affiliations: N/A