Predicting Birth Weight: Relative Importance of Sociodemographic, Medical, and Prenatal Care Variables

This study uses the 1980 National Natality Study to examine the relative importance of sociodemographic factors, medical-risk factors, and prenatal care in predicting birth weight. Findings indicate that both sociodemographic and medical-risk factors are important in predicting birth weight, with medical risks accounting for slightly more variance (after accounting for social variables) in birth weight. Although prenatal care accounts for only 1 percent of the variance, a statistical interaction between prenatal care and labor complications accounts for an additional 1 percent.