J. Kevin Nugent, Director of the Brazelton Institute

Ab Initio was first published in 1989 to highlight the uses of the NBAS in research and clinical settings. We especially want to present a forum to infancy researchers and clinicians from around the globe, to present their findings and to stimulate discussion on research and clinical topics. This issue is especially provocative and addresses many burning questions such as, the origins of temperament, gender differences in the newborn period, the nature of continuity in development, and the effectiveness of intervention in the newborn period.

Three articles examine the question of continuity and the relationship between newborn behavior and later outcome. Karen Stjernqvist's impressive 10-year follow-up study of extremely preterm infants in Sweden, reveals that there was a strong correlation between the social-interactive capacities as measured by the NBAS in the newborn period and IQ scores at both 4 and 10 years of age. Jennifer Liske and Simona Bujoreanu present preliminary data from the collaborative temperament study between the Brazelton Institute and Jerome Kagan and Nancy Snidman at Harvard University. Another temperament-related study by Swedish researcher Cristina Lundqvist-Perrson, reports a significant relation between neonatal self-regulation and outcome on the Griffith's Scale at two years.

We also present a number of newborn intervention studies in this issue. Shohei Ogi and his colleagues at the University of Nagasaki examined the long term effects of kangaroo-care on the development of premature infants. In a separate paper, they report on the effects of the NBAS as an intervention for premature infants. Jude Cassidy and her colleagues at the University of Maryland are also using the NBAS in their study of infant irritability. This intervention procedure is designed to reduce irritability and to decrease the likelihood of insecure attachment later in the first year. Drina Candilis-Huisman, NBAS trainer in Paris, describes her use of the NBAS, as a psychologist, in clinical settings with new parents (this article appears in French). The question of the origins of gender differences is addressed by Christina Lundqvist-Perrson's important study. NBAS researcher and trainer in Cambridge, England, Joanna Hawthorne, describes the effects of antenatal ultrasound on maternal anxiety.

Our interview section contains two interviews by Aoife Nugent. She asks Dr. Brazelton about his thoughts on the main challenges parents face today and his contribution to the field of pediatrics. Brazelton Institute and Touchpoints faculty member, Constance Keefer describes her observations of pediatric practices in China and the lessons we can learn.

This issue of AB INITIO also coincides with the announcement of our NBAS and CLNBAS training workshops for 2002. We will present regular NBAS training here at the Brazelton Institute and for the first time, we will present a series of one and two day CLNBAS workshops.

Finally, I would like to acknowledge Aoife Nugent's role as the associate editor in producing this issue of Ab Anitio. Simona Bujoreanu also played a major role in its production. Finally, we would like to invite your contributions and comments, so that our newsletter can maintain itself as a truly inter-disciplinary and, as its name suggests, a truly international collaborative effort, as we strive to meet the needs children and families everywhere, ab initio (from the beginning).