Promoting Infant-Directed Speech in Ghana

Status Active, not recruiting

Clinical Trial Summary

The study is a randomized evaluation of a low-cost intervention that encourages mothers and other caregivers to talk to infants, or to engage in what is known as infant-directed speech (IDS) as a way of promoting language and brain development in Tamale and surrounding areas, Ghana.

Clinical Trial Description

While parents universally use "baby talk" to soothe an infant or get her attention, engaging in a second form of infant-directed speech (IDS) - talking to young children with complete, if simplified, sentences and a rich variety of words -- varies by socioeconomic status (SES) within societies and across societies. Preliminary evidence collected from Burkina Faso and Ghana, as well as anecdotal experiences in Kenya and Uganda, are consistent with this: It is less common for parents in sub-Saharan Africa to talk to their infants than it is among parents in the US. Because IDS promotes cognitive development of children, gaps in IDS compound the disadvantages that children in poorer families face. The most likely explanation for the IDS deficit among the poor is inaccurately low expectations about the pace of child development. A large body of literature in the US has shown that the lower the parents' SES, the lower their expectations about when children will master certain cognitive skills, e.g. speaking in a partial sentence of 3 words or more. The study is a randomized evaluation of a low-cost intervention that encourages mothers and other caregivers to talk to infants, or to engage in what is known as infant-directed speech (IDS) as a way of promoting language and brain development in Tamale and surrounding areas, Ghana. Parental beliefs about and practices of IDS will be evaluated through data obtained from a series of questions on these topics at baseline, during a short phone follow-up survey, and at endline. This will mainly be self-reported although we hope to explore the observation of said practices at endline. Results of the treatment arm will be compared to that of the comparison group to determine if the intervention is effective. To assess IDS behavior and child language development at endline, the LENA system (Language ENvironment Analysis) which produces two key measures It produced two key measures: adult word count (language the child hears) and conversational turns (the sounds/words the child produces in conversation with adults/others) will be compared among groups. Conditional on funding, there may be a 2-year follow-up survey (i.e. second endline) to measure children's cognitive development. ;

Study Design

Related Conditions & MeSH terms

Infant Development

Clinical Trial Details

NCT number	NCT04807907
Study type	Interventional
Source	Northwestern University
Contact
Status	Active, not recruiting
Phase	N/A
Start date	March 2, 2021
Completion date	June 1, 2024

View Details

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Clinical trials are conducted in a series of steps, called phases - each phase is designed to answer a separate research question.

Phase 1: Researchers test a new drug or treatment in a small group of people for the first time to evaluate its safety, determine a safe dosage range, and identify side effects.
Phase 2: The drug or treatment is given to a larger group of people to see if it is effective and to further evaluate its safety.
Phase 3: The drug or treatment is given to large groups of people to confirm its effectiveness, monitor side effects, compare it to commonly used treatments, and collect information that will allow the drug or treatment to be used safely.
Phase 4: Studies are done after the drug or treatment has been marketed to gather information on the drug's effect in various populations and any side effects associated with long-term use.