Stephen Matthey

Chinese women (N = 102) who had migrated to Sydney, Australia, were interviewed about traditional cultural practices they had followed in the first six weeks of the postpartum period. The majority (90.2%) of these women had adhered to some form of practice, with the most frequent being eating warm ('yang') food (78%), following confinement for one month (55%), and using warm water for washing themselves (19%). Of note was that 18% of these women felt ambivalent about following such practices, with the impression being that the adoption of such practices was more a result of family or in-law expectations than the wishes of the woman. Of the 9.8% who did not follow any form of traditional Chinese postpartum practice, only half felt ambivalent or negative about not doing so. There was no relationship between the women's mood at six weeks postpartum and how she felt about following or not following such practices. The adherence to traditional cultural practices was not related to length of time in Australia, nor to whether the woman was residing with her parents or in-laws. There was some indication that more educated women were less likely to follow cultural practices following the birth.

The Children's Depression Inventory (CDI) is used to screen for depression in school-age children. Such screening uses the manual's reported information on suggested cutoff scores. These cutoff scores are based on an erroneous base-rate calculation and an inadequate methodology. Data are provided showing that for the suggested cutoff scores of 13 or 20, the CDI has poor receiver-operating characteristics. Indeed, for the cutoff score of 20, suggested as being suitable for screening in the general population (e.g., schools), clinicians will miss 86% of depressed children. In conclusion, it is recommended that the CDI is better suited as a continuous measure of mood and that cutoff scores should not be used to screen for the likely presence or absence of depression.

Objective: To determine the psychometric properties of a parent‐report questionnaire (Sleep and Settle Questionnaire (SSQ)) assessing: (i) the infant’s sleep and settling behaviour, and (ii) the parent’s level of concern with such behaviours. Methodology: Test‐retest reliability was determined by administering the SSQ to 20 mothers on two occasions, 7–14 days apart. Validity was determined by comparing SSQ responses between mothers with 6‐week‐old infants who, on a semistructured questionnaire, reported no sleep or settling difficulties (n = 56–60) with those who reported they were experiencing difficulties (n = 133). Further comparison was made with a sample of mothers (n = 34–36) attending a community class on sleep and settling difficulties with infants. Sensitivity to change was determined by comparing mothers’ SSQ responses at 6‐weeks and 6‐months postpartum. Results: The SSQ was found to have low test–retest reliability on items referring to the infants’ sleep and settling behaviour, but moderate reliability for the extent that such behaviour bothered the parent. Comparison across the different samples showed good discriminant and concurrent validity. Conclusions: Parental reports on the SSQ indicates that over a short period (1–2 weeks) the infants’ sleep and settling behaviour can change considerably, but that the extent to which such behaviour bothers the parent is more stable. Good validity demonstrates the SSQ is sensitive to differing infant behaviour. It is recommended as both a clinical and research instrument, and could be used to complement assessments focusing on the parent’s psychosocial adjustment in the early postpartum period.