Presidential address. Prediction of function from infancy to early childhood: Implications for pediatric psychology

Objective To determine whether item groupings derived from the Bayley Infant Neurodevelopmental Screener (BINS) are stable and predictive of 36-month cognitive and motor outcome. Methods BINS was administered at 6, 12, and 24 months, and the Bayley-II or McCarthy scales at 36 months. The BINS was factor analyzed, and factors, biomedical and environmental variables, were related to 36-month outcomes. Results Three factors were identified at each age, accounting for 52% to 64% of the variance. Continuity in factors over infancy and predictive utility of similar functions at 36 months were found. Optimal factor scores (greater than or equal to 75th percentile) increased the likelihood of later normal cognitive or motor outcome (ORs 2.14-7.94). Conclusions Stability and continuity over time exist in specific subdomains of function on a neurodevelopmental screening test.