exploit their movements to produce an expected response from the environment. Although exploration is considered fundamental to learning, few studies have quantified infant exploratory learning. Quantifying exploration may provide critical insights into how learning emerges in early infancy and, in turn
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Quantifying Infant Exploratory Learning
Jeong Ah Kim, Sungwoo Park, Linda Fetters, Sandrah P. Eckel, Masayoshi Kubo, and Barbara Sargent
Spatial, But Not Temporal, Kinematics of Spontaneous Upper Extremity Movements Are Related to Gross and Fine Motor Skill Attainment in Infancy
Rachel Bican, Linda Lowes, Lindsay Alfano, Michael McNally, Emily Durbak, Xueliang Pan, and Jill Heathcock
al., 2000 , 2001 ; Lee et al., 2008 ; Thelen et al., 1996 ). Upper extremity movements are some of the very first motor behaviors in infancy and are considered foundational for an infant to optimally explore their environment for sensorimotor experiences that are important for the development of motor
A Perspective on Human Movement Variability With Applications in Infancy Motor Development
Nicholas Stergiou, Yawen Yu, and Anastasia Kyvelidou
Movement variability is considered essential to typical motor development. However, multiple theoretical perspectives and measurement tools have limited interpretation of the importance of movement variability in biological systems. The complementary use of linear and nonlinear measures have recently allowed for the evaluation of not only the magnitude of variability but also the temporal structure of variability. As a result, the theoretical model of optimal movement variability was introduced. The model suggests that the development of healthy and highly adaptable systems relies on the achievement of an optimal state of variability. Alternatively, abnormal development may be characterized by a narrow range of behaviors, some of which may be rigid, inflexible, and highly predictable or, on the contrary, random, unfocused, and unpredictable. In the present review, this theoretical model is described as it relates to motor development in infancy and specifically the development of sitting posture.
Infants’ Motor Activity During a Mother–Infant Interaction Alternating Silent and Singing Phases
Marianne Jover, Mathilde Cellier, and Celine Scola
). Movement and communication in human infancy: The social dynamics of development . Human Movement Science, 11 ( 4 ), 387 – 423 . doi:10.1016/0167-9457(92)90021-3 10.1016/0167-9457(92)90021-3 Gratier , M. , Devouche , E. , Guellai , B. , Infanti
An Excellent Adventure on Some Roads Less Traveled
David I. Anderson
Joe’s work spoke to me so clearly. However, it was prophetic. After devouring Joe’s papers the following fall semester, I contacted him the subsequent spring semester and asked if I could visit his infancy lab at Berkeley to learn more about his work. Joe graciously offered to give a colloquy at SFSU
Demographic Correlates of Movement Behaviors in Infants: A Longitudinal Study
Zhiguang Zhang, Madison Predy, Kylie D. Hesketh, Lesley Pritchard, and Valerie Carson
Movement behaviors (ie, physical activity, sedentary behavior, sleep) are crucial for healthy development in young children as early as infancy (<1 y). For instance, tummy time (or time awake in the prone position), a form of physical activity for infants who are not yet mobile, has been associated
Infants Born Preterm Demonstrate Reduced Task-Specific Exploration During the Scaffolded Kick-Activated Mobile Task
Jeong Ah Kim, Sungwoo Park, Linda Fetters, Sandrah P. Eckel, Masayoshi Kubo, and Barbara Sargent
during infancy as exploration and learning are typically developed with sensorimotor ability. We propose that motor ability may not be the primary impairment in the present study, since there were no differences in the spatial exploration volume and path between the two groups of infants. Differences in
Automated Measures of Force and Motion Can Improve Our Understanding of Infants’ Motor Persistence
Kelsey Lucca, David Gire, Rachel Horton, and Jessica A. Sommerville
processes that guide infants’ trying behavior. To fully understand the nature of persistence, it is important to begin our investigations in infancy, because that is when individual differences in persistence first emerge ( Messer et al., 1986 ). By examining early persistence, researchers can begin to gain
Do Fundamental Movement Skill Domains in Early Childhood Predict Engagement in Physical Activity of Varied Intensities Later at School Age? A 3-Year Longitudinal Study
Maria Kasanen, Arto Laukkanen, Donna Niemistö, Jimi Kotkajuuri, Nanne-Mari Luukkainen, and Arja Sääkslahti
This study was conducted to determine how total fundamental movement skill (FMS) score and, separately, locomotor skill (LMS), and object control skill scores in children 3–8 years old predicted their specific-intensity physical activity 3 years later. Overall, 441 Finnish children (51.7% female, baseline mean age of 5.6 years) participated in the study. Total FMS, LMS, and object control skill scores were assessed using the Test of Gross Motor Development, third edition. The time spent engaged in physical activity of different intensities (light, moderate, vigorous, moderate-to-vigorous, light-to-vigorous, and sedentary behavior) was determined using accelerometers. A two-level regression model was used in the analysis, considering potential covariates and interactions. The results showed that moderate physical activity, vigorous physical activity, and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity were predicted by the total FMS score (β = 0.177 to 0.203, p = .001–.003) and the LMS score (β = 0.140 to 0.164, p = .004–.014), but not the object control skill score. Moreover, the LMS score inversely predicted sedentary behavior (β = −0.116, p = .042). In conclusion, higher FMS and, specifically, LMS scores seem to predict more engagement in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity and less sedentary behavior over time. However, most of the variance in physical activity remains unexplained.
To Drop or Not to Drop: Newly Standing Infants Maintain Hold of Objects When Experiencing a Loss of Balance
Amanda J. Arnold and Laura J. Claxton
If adults are carrying an object and start to experience a loss of balance, they frequently maintain hold of that object instead of dropping it. In these loss-of-balance situations, adults tend to maintain hold of the object, instead of freeing both hands to aid in balance recovery. The current study investigated the ontogeny of this behavior by examining if infants also maintain hold of objects when experiencing a fall. Sixteen newly standing infants were video-recorded while standing and holding a toy and standing while not holding a toy. Similar to adults, when infants experienced a loss of balance, they did not drop held objects. However, maintaining hold of objects only partially interfered with the use of upper-limb protective strategies while falling. These results suggest that the tendency to maintain hold of an object while falling is present early in development and with little independent standing experience.
