4. Motor Development Flashcards
Motor development was previously believed to be an element of n____ m____
Neurological maturity
Most researchers now take a d____ s____ t____ (DST) approach
Dynamic Systems Theory (DST) approach
Define Dynamic
Change over time
Define system
Many e____ i____
Many elements interacting
Dynamic systems theory explains how b____ c____ over t____
How behaviour changes over time
What are six causes dynamic systems theory emphasises for motor development? (HOW)
1. Increases in s____ and w____
2. N____ mechanism
3. P____ control
4. B____
5. P____ skills
6. M____
- Increases in strength and weight
- Neural mechanism
- Posture control
- Balance
- Perceptual skills
- Motivation
Fill in the gaps about dynamic system theory
1. Most children arrive at m____
2. Children may arrive at m____ via different r____
3. The process depends more upon e____, c____ and l____ than was previously thought
- milestones
- milestones routes
- experimentation, curiosity, learning
Motor development is an o____ p____
Ongoing Process
Motor skills are divided into ____ categories
2
Give three examples of fine motor skills (smaller muscles)
1. G____
2. Object m____
3. D____
- Grasping (hand)
- Object manipulation
- Drawing
Give five examples of gross motor skills (large muscles)
1. S____
2. R____
3. C____
4. W____
5. R____
- Sitting
- Reaching (arm)
- Crawling
- Walking
- Running
Fill in the gaps about the stepping reflex
1. Co____ behaviour resembling wa____
2. Al____ leg movements
3. “disappears” around __ m____ of age
- Coordinated, walking
- Alternating
- 2 months
Why does the stepping reflex stop at age 2 months?
Rapid weight gain causes legs to get heavier faster than they get stronger
How do we know that the stepping reflex is not neurological maturity?
Because infants can do the same behaviour when l____ d____ (d____ g____ p____)
Because infants can do the same behaviour when laying down (distributed gravitational pull)
Sitting independently aids r____
Reaching
Sitting independently has a cascading effect on i____ p____
Infant perception
Sitting creates new opportunities for exploring. New opportunities for exploring shapes v____ p____
visual perception
Figure/ground assignment allows us to do what?
Identify objects from the b____
Understand d____ and p____ r____
Identify objects (figures) from the background
Understand depth and plan reaching
Adults use what three things to determine figure/ground?
1. Sy____
2. Co____ (cu____)
3. Lo____ region
Symmetry
Convexity (curvature)
Lower region
Infants need figure/ground segregation to guide what three things?
1. At____
2. Ey____ movements
3. Le____
Attention
Eye movements
Learning
A signifiant preference in Ross-Sheehy et al 2016 figure/ground experiment indicates what?
S____ infants perceive s____ as a cue to figure/ground a____
S____ may be related to perceiving d____
Sitting infants perceive symmetry as a cue to figure/ground assignment
Sitting may be related to perceiving depth
What is meant by reaching and grasping?
S____ out one or both h____ toward something to t____ or g____ it
Stretching out one or both hands toward something to touch or grasp it
What are three things children must be able to do to reach?
1. Locate the g____
2. Have a stable b____
3. Control a____ e____
V____ timing = need all components to ‘a____’ into successful reach
- Locate the goal
- Have a stable base
- Control arm extension
Variable Timing - need all components to ‘assemble’ into successful reach
Initial reaches are swiping movements. Reaching becomes stable after what?
Independent sitting
With increased experience, more signs of anticipation in grasping
What results were found in sticky mittens experiments?
- After only __ week infants’ in the training group grasps and reached significantly ____ often than their peers
- Effect persists for __ months
- But Williams, Corbetta & Guam (2015) found non-sticky mittens had ____ performance
- After only one week infants’ in the training group grasps and reached significantly more often than their peers
- Effect persists for 12 months
- But Williams, Corbetta & Guam (2015) found non-sticky mittens had higher performance
Piaget created the “A-not-B” task to test 8-10mo infants’ representations. What is the “A-not-B” task?
- Hide toy at __, infant f____ (r____ ~ 6x)
- Hide toy at __, infants searches __, not __
- Hide toy at A, infant finds (repeat ~6x)
- Hide toy at B, infant searches A, not B
Piaget reasoned infants do not have object permanence until what age?
Around 10 months
Behaviour is the product of what three things?
This means A-not-B error is the result of what?
1. P____ h____
2. Just p____ p____
3. P____
- P____ a____ to A and p____ r____ to A
Past history
Just previous past
Present
Previous attention to A and practice reaching to A
DST explanation includes what three things?
1. At____
2. Mo____ memory
3. Pr____
Attractors
Motor memory
Preservation
What errors persists in the A-not-B task showing it can’t be because of object permanence?
1. There is no r____ on A
2. There are l____ d____ even in a____
3. If you change p____ between trials, erros are r____
- There is no reaching on A
– There are no objects (just wave lids)
– Unmarked locations (sandbox) in 2-4yrs - There are long delays – even in adults
- If you change posture between trials errors are reduced (less reliant on motor memory)
At around what age do infants become capable to self-locomotion?
8 months
Toddlers begin walking independently around what age?
13-14 months (toddling gait - unstable, this is where word toddler comes from!)
What research findings support the fact motor skills are context dependent?
1. Knowledge does not t____ from c____ to w____
2. __% of children plunged down a____ slopes, but did become more cautious with e____
3. K____ is context dependent
- Knowledge does not transfer from crawling to walking
- 67% of children plunged down ALL slopes, but did become more cautious with experience
- Knowledge is context dependent
What is the importance of falling?
Falling (errors in b____ and m____ c____) may help us understand the role of e____ in e____ d____
Falling (errors in balance and motor control) may help us understand the role of errors in early development.
After a fall, infants returned to play on average after how many seconds?
1.84s
Impact of toddlers falling over is mitigated by what two things?
1. Small b____ size
2. 2. Infants’ quick r____ behaviours (e.g. b____ with h____)
1.Small body size
2. Infants’ quick reactive behaviours (e.g. bracing with hands)
What were Han and Adolph (2020) four findings on the importance of falling?
1. Infants rarely fu____
2. Caregivers were rarely co____
3. Wa____ experience did not predict fu____, caregiver co____ or re____
4. Frequent, low-impact errors encourage fu____ pr____
- Infants rarely fussed (4% of falls)
- Caregivers were rarely concerned (8%)
- Walking experience did not predict fussing, caregiver concern or recovery
- Frequent, low-impact errors encourage further practice
What age group has higher rates of pedestrian injuries than any other age group?
Children 5 - 14 years
What was found in an experiment of crossing the road with friends?
P____ pose a r____ to road safety
Adolescents took r____ gaps with a f____ than a____
To compensate for short gaps, they e____ and c____ faster
When solo, f____ crossers were more r____
__yo first crossers riskier than adults
Peers pose a risk to road safety…
- Adolescents took riskier gaps with a friend than alone
- To compensate for short gaps, they entered and crossed faster
- When solo, first crossers were more risky
(and 12yo first crossers riskier than adults)
Motor development depends on what three things?
1. Ex____
2. Cu____
3. Learning by ex____
Experimentation
Curiosity
Learning by experience
Motor development is an ____ process
Ongoing
Behaviour is the product of ne____ ti____
nested timescales
Motor experience is related to l____
Language
The effects of neglect in Romanian orphans were not u____
This shows development is a c____ i____ between e____ input and g____
Universal
Shows development is complex interplay between environmental input and genetics
