Subject assumption operation is one of the four axes that underlie research using Clinical Indicators of Risk for Child Development (IRDI) and consists of an anticipation performed by the maternal agent on the behalf of a not yet constituted subject - the baby. This paper presents a case report that aimed to investigate how the subject assumption operation occurs in a neonatal semi intensive care unit. To do so, a semi-structured interview was conducted followed by application of the IRDI protocol and the Denver II instrument. Results showed that the subject assumption can occur, but, in this clinical case, it was unsustainable and non-operational, since the mother-child relation was possibly influenced by the physical limitation of the baby, their prolonged hospitalization, and emotional aspects of the mother.
Keywords
Child development; Neonatal hospitalization; mother-baby relationship; early stimulation