Crying As A Sign, A Symptom, And A Signal

Clinics in Developmental Medicine No. 152

Crying as a Sign, a Symptom and a Signal brings the reader up to date on new evidence concerning the developmental and clinical significance of infant crying in the first few months and years of life. Initially studied as a sign of disease, crying is now being understood not only as a sign, but also as a symptom of problematic functioning in early development. We now know much more about normative patterns of development of infant crying and how they may be manifest in a variety of clinical settings (emergency room complaint, painful procedures, colic, temper tantrums, non-verbal and mentally challenged infants). This has brought about a new conceptualization of the significance of early infant crying which an international team of experts describe and examine. In this authoritative clinical text, both historical and methodological perspectives are brought to a multidisciplinary synopsis of the new understanding of this infant behavior.

1. Introduction: crying as a sign, a symptom and a signal: evolving concepts of crying behavior Ronald G. Barr, Brian Hopkins and James A. Green; 2. Can we hear the cause of infants' crying? Gwen E. Gustafson, Rebecca M. Wood and James A. Green; 3. Crying as an indicator of pain in infants Kenneth D. Craig, Cheryl A. Gilbert and Christine M. Lilley; 4. Colic - the 'transient responsivity' hypothesis Ronald G. Barr and Megan Gunnar; 5. Clinical pies for etiology and outcome in infants presenting with early increased crying Liisa Lehtonen, Siobhan Gormally and Ronald G. Barr; 6. Crying complaints in the emergency department Steven Poole and David Magilner; 7. Crying in the child with a disability: the special challenge of crying as a signal James A. Blackman; 8. Toddlers' temper tantrums: flushing and other visible autonomic activity in an anger-crying complex Michael Potegal; 9. Acoustic cry analysis, neonatal status and long-term developmental outcome James A. Green, Julia R. Irwin and Gwen E. Gustafson; 11. Crying in infant primates: insights into the development of crying in chimpanzees Kim A. Bard; 12. Development of crying in normal infants: method, theory and some speculations Brian Hopkins; 13. The crying infant and toddler: challenges and promissory notes Ronald G. Barr, Brian Hopkins and James A. Green; Index.