Describe the Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS) and the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit Network Neurobehavioral Scale (NNNS). How are scores used?

What will be an ideal response?

Answer: T. Berry Brazelton’s NBAS is the instrument that is most widely used by doctors, nurses, and researchers to assess the behavior of newborn babies. It evaluates the newborn’s reflexes, muscle tone, state changes, responsiveness to physical and social stimuli, and other reactions. The NNNS, an instrument consisting of similar items, is specially designed for use with newborns at risk for developmental problems because of low birth weight, preterm delivery, prenatal substance exposure, or other conditions. Scores are used to recommend appropriate interventions and to guide parents in meeting their baby’s unique needs.
The NBAS has been given to many infants around the world. As a result, researchers have learned about individual and cultural differences in newborn behavior and how child-rearing practices can maintain or change a baby’s reactions. Because newborn behavior and parenting combine to influence development, changes in scores over the first week or two of life (rather than a single score) provide the best estimate of the baby’s ability to recover from the stress of birth. NBAS “recovery curves” predict intelligence and absence of emotional and behavior problems with moderate success well into the preschool years.
In some hospitals, health professionals use the NBAS or the NNNS to help parents get to know their newborns through discussion or demonstration of the capacities these instruments assess. Parents who participate in these programs, compared with no-intervention controls, interact more confidently and effectively with their babies. Although lasting effects on development have not been demonstrated, NBAS-based interventions are useful in helping the parent–infant relationship get off to a good start.