Observed behaviours of pre-term children in a social play situation with classroom peers.

BACKGROUND

A number of studies have reported social adjustment problems in pre-term children.

OBJECTIVES

To observe the pre-term's behaviour in an experimental situation and correlate these observed behaviours with the children's peer-rated social behaviours (withdrawal, aggression and sociability/leadership).

METHODS

Of 56 pre-term children, 24 were classified as the sick pre-term (SPT) group and 32 children as the healthy pre-term (HPT) group. The comparison group comprised 56 healthy full-terms. The experimental situation used a game called Rush Hour, a labyrinth-type board game. The play situation was videotaped and behaviours (number of consecutive moves) were coded in real time.

RESULTS

At 12 years of age, the sick pre-term (SPT) group exhibited fewer consecutive moves during the game than the other two groups, especially when the task became more complex (involving four consecutives moves). Moreover, the Complex Task Index was correlated with the social withdrawal score rated by peers.

CONCLUSION

The at-birth sick pre-term gradually became less involved in a complex decision-making task and this was understood as a lesser ability to make a decision in a complex setting.