Northern European, black, and Indian Asian mothers and their newborns were matched for parity, gestational age, sex, maternal age, maternal smoking habits, and social class. Indian Asian infants, however, were lighter and had smaller head and limb circumferences than the other groups, although their linear measurements were the same. Black and European infants were almost identical in size. No effects on any of the fetal measurements were attributed to smoking.
The importance of sociocultural factors in preschoolers’ play behaviors was examined in 61 English children from working- and middle-class backgrounds and 89 Sikh, Muslim, and Hindu children. The ages of the children ranged from 22 to 55 months. Results suggested that children’s social group membership was associated with differences in the style and content of play. Class and cultural groups seemed to differentiate the preschoolers’ motivations, behavior patterns, and social cues.
Weights and heights from birth to age two were measured for North African infants born in France. These measurements were compared to standard growth curves for French infants and to the growth of French infants living in similar conditions. There were no differences in growth rates for height, but North African female infants were heavier at six to nine months of age.
Weight data was gathered on 220 Bangladeshi infants. The mean weights of the Bangledeshi infants at birth and 6 and 18 months of age were lower than the Tanner-Whitehouse fiftith percentiles (obtained from British children). The sample means were similar to those reported for well-nourished Indian infants, suggesting that these are a more appropriate reference group for Bangledeshi infants than the Tanner-Whitehouse values.
BW and related variables were analyzed from a sample of over 25,000 infants born in Amsterdam. The BW difference between Dutch and Asian infants disappeared after allowing for maternal height. Mediterranean infants displayed higher means than other groups, whereas black infants showed lower means. The authors suggest that
-100-
Questia, a part of Gale, Cengage Learning. www.questia.com
Publication information:
Book title: Infancy and Culture:An International Review and Source Book.
Contributors: Hiram E.Fitzgerald - Editor, Rosalind B.Johnson - Editor, Laurie A.Van Egeren - Editor, Domini R.Castellino - Editor, Carol Barnes Johnson - Editor, Mary Judge-Lawton - Editor.
Publisher: Falmer Press.
Place of publication: New York.
Publication year: 1999.
Page number: 100.
This material is protected by copyright and, with the exception of fair use, may not be further copied, distributed or transmitted in any form or by any means.
One moment ...
- Georgia
- Arial
- Times New Roman
- Verdana
- Courier/monospaced
Reset