Open research questions in Infant Health and Development
99 unresolved questions extracted from the limitations and future-work sections of 383 Infant Health and Development papers in our library. Each links back to the study that raised it.
What the literature leaves open
Current baby monitoring solutions have limited functionality. Existing solutions do not fully address the needs of both infants and caregivers.
The complexity of the interaction between antibiotics and the body. The difficulty in assessing long-term effects of antibiotic administration. The need for more studies to inform evidence-based practices.
Adverse effects due to changes in the composition of the intestinal microbiota as result of the administration of antibiotics during the perinatal period · 2022 · DOIThe choice of appropriate concepts and methods for assessing temperament has led to controversy. There is a need for a multi-method approach to the study of infant temperament.
The age at which the 'adult' circadian rhythm of cortisol secretion emerges is difficult to ascertain. Previous studies have conflicting data on when the circadian rhythm appears.
There is a need to improve nutritive sucking in premature infants. The study addresses the gap in knowledge on the effects of tactile stimulation on nutritive sucking in premature infants.
The paper identifies a gap in the understanding of the history of infant feeding. The paper explores the various methods of infant feeding used throughout history.
The need for further understanding of the fetus's responses to different stimuli - The need for more research on the fetus's environment and its impact on development
Further studies can investigate the neural mechanisms underlying infant responses to social and nonsocial stimuli. Research can examine the application of the discrepancy hypothesis to other areas of infant development.
Previous studies have reported no developmental changes in the temporal aspects of the acoustic cry signal. There is a need to investigate the developmental aspects of infant cry using a more comprehensive approach.
The research gap lies in understanding the physiological processes underlying anxiety and emotional self-control. The study aims to explore the relationship between biofeedback and family systems theory.
Current theories cannot explain the imitation behavior in human neonates. There is a lack of understanding of the mechanisms underlying this behavior.
There is a need for a comprehensive overview of mental retardation and nutrition. There is a need for a useful resource for health professionals on nutrition and diet therapy.
The lack of experimental investigation of the infant's sensory-perceptual and learning capabilities. The previous view of the infant's world as a blooming, buzzing confusion.
The study aims to address the gap in our understanding of infant perception and cognition. The study aims to replicate earlier findings on a larger sample. The study determines if young infants recognize the identity between different orientations of the same form.
Future research should explore alternative explanations, such as learned, culturally determined behavior. The paper suggests that future investigations should examine the development of left-lateral placement in response to anxiety in adults raised in different cultures.
The gap in current research is the lack of understanding of the bio-psychological basis for the left-lateral preference. The paper identifies the need for further research on the significance of lateral preference in mother-infant contact.
Further studies could investigate sound attenuation in different frequency ranges. Research could explore the effects of sound stimulation on fetal development.
The age at which human beings can modify their behavior based on experience is unknown. There is a lack of understanding of the components of sucking in human newborns.
The previous underestimation of the capacity for observation in young children. The lack of understanding of the basis for empathy between infant and mother.
Future research could investigate the response of infants to other types of stimuli, such as auditory or tactile stimuli. Future research could examine the development of attention in infants over time, using visual movement as a stimulus.
The gap in prior research is the lack of a precise measurement of the effect of stimulation on nonnutritive sucking. The gap in prior research is the difficulty in introducing stimuli that do not elicit startle responses in infants.
The sample size is limited to 104 babies. The study only considers the first year of life.
There is a lack of understanding of the patterns of adjustment to sleeping through the night. The factors that influence this process are not well understood.
The lack of understanding of how premature infants coordinate sucking, swallowing, and breathing activities during feeding. The need for more research on the individual differences in feeding mechanisms among premature infants.
The mechanisms of early infant feeding are not well understood. The coordination between sucking, swallowing, and breathing is essential for effective feeding, but the exact mechanisms are not known.
Most-cited papers in Infant Health and Development
- Parental diary of infant cry and fuss behaviour. · Archives of Disease in Childhood · 1988 · 300 citations
- The perception of facial expressions in newborns · European Journal of Developmental Psychology · 2007 · 228 citations
- The effect of infant irritability on mother-infant interaction: A growth-curve analysis. · Developmental Psychology · 1994 · 160 citations
- The Roots of Turn‐Taking in the Neonatal Period · Infant and Child Development · 2016 · 69 citations
- Infants relax in response to unfamiliar foreign lullabies · Nature Human Behaviour · 2020 · 65 citations
- The Association Between Common Labor Drugs and Suckling When Skin‐to‐Skin During the First Hour After Birth · Birth · 2015 · 62 citations
- The relationship between parental behavior and infant regulation: A systematic review · Developmental Review · 2020 · 57 citations
- Food Texture Preferences in Infants Versus Toddlers · Early Child Development and Care · 1998 · 48 citations
- REINFORCEMENT OF VOCALIZATIONS THROUGH CONTINGENT VOCAL IMITATION · Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis · 2011 · 47 citations
- The Effect of Music-Reinforced Nonnutritive Sucking on State of Preterm, Low Birthweight Infants Experiencing Heelstick · Journal of Music Therapy · 2008 · 43 citations
Most recent work
- BABY CRADLE -ARTIFICIAL MOTHER’S LAP · International Journal of Engineering Technology and Management Sciences · 2026
- “It Looked Like I Was Going Through a Breakup”: Extinction-Based Sleep Training and the Cultural Dilemmas of Mothering · Qualitative Sociology Review · 2026
- Infant positioning behavior varies across time and between assessment contexts · Infant Behavior and Development · 2026
- Automatic annotation to train ROI detection algorithm for premature infant respiration monitoring in NICU · Medical & Biological Engineering & Computing · 2026
- Preferential Cup Size and End-State Comfort in Children · Journal of Motor Behavior · 2026
- Baby Cry Analyzer (Infant Cry Signal Analysis and Classification) · International Research Journal of Modernization in Engineering Technology & Science · 2026
- Complementary feeding patterns in preterm and term infants · Appetite · 2026
- Maternal sensitivity supports infant sleep: evidence from two longitudinal prospective cohorts on maternal childhood maltreatment, maternal sensitivity, and infant sleep · European Child & Adolescent Psychiatry · 2026
- Early evolution of oral feeding skills in very preterm infants: impact of an oral stimulation protocol assessed by cot-side suckometer: a pilot study · European Journal of Pediatrics · 2026
- Contingent Mother's Voice Intervention Facilitates Attention in Hospitalized Preterm Infants With Neural Insults · Mind Brain and Education · 2025
Find a gap in your own Infant Health and Development sub-topic
This page shows what the Infant Health and Development literature already flags as unresolved. To narrow it to your specific question, run the guided finder — it searches the gap library on demand and checks candidates against 250M+ OpenAlex works.
Open the Research Gap Finder →