Use of the Newborn Behavioral Observations System as an early intervention for infants and their parents: A scoping review

Satoshi Yago; Yuki Takahashi; Emi Tsukamoto; Asuka Saito; Eiko Saito

doi:10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2023.105811

Use of the Newborn Behavioral Observations System as an early intervention for infants and their parents: A scoping review

Early Hum Dev. 2023 Aug:183:105811. doi: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2023.105811. Epub 2023 Jun 19.

Authors

Satoshi Yago¹, Yuki Takahashi², Emi Tsukamoto³, Asuka Saito⁴, Eiko Saito⁵

Affiliations

¹ Department of Child and Family Nursing, Graduate School of Health Care Sciences, Tokyo Medical and Dental University (TMDU), 1-5-45 Yushima, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8519, Japan. Electronic address: sycfn@tmd.ac.jp.
² Department of Integrated Health Sciences, Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya University, 1-1-20 Daiko-Minami, Higashi, Nagoya, Aichi 461-8673, Japan.
³ Department of Nursing Science, Faculty of Health and Welfare Science, Okayama Prefectural University, 111 kuboki, Soja, Okayama 719-1197, Japan.
⁴ Department of Nursing, Graduate School of Health Sciences, Gunma University, 3-39-22 Showa-machi, Maebashi, Gunma 371-8514, Japan.
⁵ Graduate School of Nursing, International Health Care and Midwifery, Japanese Red Cross College of Nursing, 4-1-3 Hiroo, Shibuya, Tokyo 150-0012, Japan.

PMID: 37385114
DOI: 10.1016/j.earlhumdev.2023.105811

Abstract

Background: The Newborn Behavioral Observations (NBO) system is an infant-focused, family-centered, relationship-based tool designed to help parents become aware of their baby's abilities and to promote a positive parent-child relationship from the very beginning of birth.

Aims: The aim of this scoping review was to provide an overview of the key characteristics of the research and evidence accumulated over the past 17 years on the early NBO intervention for infants and their parents to identify the existing research gaps and to inform the future direction of research on the NBO System.

Study design: A scoping review guided by Arksey and O'Malley's methodological framework and the PRISMA-ScR Checklist was conducted. This review used six databases (PubMed, CINAHL, MEDLINE, Google Scholar, Ichushi-Web, and CiNii) and was limited to English and Japanese language articles from January 2006, when the NBO was developed, to September 2022. Reference lists were also hand-searched to further identify relevant articles from the NBO site.

Results: A total of 29 articles were selected. Through the analysis of included articles, four overarching themes were identified: (1) usage pattern of the NBO; (2) participants, setting, duration, and frequency of the NBO intervention; (3) outcome measures and effects of the NBO intervention; and (4) findings from a qualitative perspective. The review suggested that early NBO intervention had a positive impact on maternal mental health and sensitivity to the infant, confidence and knowledge of practitioners, and infant development.

Conclusions: This scoping review shows that the early NBO intervention has been implemented in a variety of cultures and settings and by professionals of various disciplines. However, research to evaluate the long-term effects of this intervention on a wider range of subjects is needed.

Keywords: Early intervention; Infant; Newborn behavioral observations; Parent-infant interaction; Postnatal care; Relationship-based care.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't
Review
Systematic Review

MeSH terms

Behavior Observation Techniques*
Child Development
Humans
Infant, Newborn
Mental Health
Parent-Child Relations
Parents* / psychology