CULTURALLY APPROPRIATE MEASURES FOR MONITORING CHILD-DEVELOPMENT AT FAMILY AND COMMUNITY-LEVEL - A WHO COLLABORATIVE STUDY

Culturally appropriate techniques for monitoring child psychosocial de velopment were prepared and tested in China, India and Thailand on a t otal of 28 139 children, This is the largest study of its kind ever un dertaken, Representative groups aged between birth and 6 years were ex amined and the results were used to produce national development stand ards - separately for rural and urban children in China and India, and for all children combined in Thailand - which are considered to be mo re satisfactory than foreign-based standards. In each country, between 13 and 19 key milestones of psychosocial development were selected fo r a simplified developmental screening operation and these have been i ncorporated on a home-based record of a child's growth and development . Between 35 and 67 tests have been devised in each country to test th e children at first-referral level.