Visual habituation and dishabituation in preterm infants: A review and meta-analysis

We review comparative studies of infant habituation and dishabituation performance focusing on preterm infants. Habituation refers to cognitive encoding, and dishabituation refers to discrimination and memory. If habituation and dishabituation constitute basic information-processing skills, and preterm infants suffer cognitive disadvantages, then preterms should show diminished habituation and dishabituation performance. Our review provides evidence that preterm infants’ habituation and dishabituation are impoverished relative to term infants. On the whole, effect sizes indicated that the differences between preterms and terms are of a medium magnitude. We also find that preterms’ performance is moderated by risk factors, stimulus materials, procedural variables, and age. These factors need to be taken into account in the construction of tests in which habituation–dishabituation tasks are employed. Overall, the habituation–dishabituation paradigm presents a promising approach in the diagnosis of cognitive status and development in preterm infants.