The New-born and Sensorimotor Development

Question 1

what does the altricial human new-born have?

Answer 1

immature motor abilities- this means they require care and feeding to survive due to their helpless state

Question 2

reasons for altriciality of humans:

Answer 2

• large head size of the foetus
• limitations in the metabolic capacity of the pregnant mother
• limitations in the hip width of the mother

Question 3

phylogenetic

Answer 3

relating to evolution of species

Question 4

maturation

Answer 4

development according to a genetic timetable

Question 5

what are neonatal reflexes used as?

Answer 5

a stepping tool to later develop locomotion and help the new-born survive

Question 6

why are neonatal reflexes important

Answer 6

for stimulating senses through sensory input, e.g., stepping reflex provides tactile input to advance the brain

Question 7

examples of neonatal reflexes

Answer 7

sucking
rooting
respiratory occlusion
stepping
moro reflex
palmar grasp
plantar grasp

Question 8

what does the presence of neonatal reflexes indicate?

Answer 8

they are either innate or learned at birth
- biologically programmed from evolution?

Question 9

what does the maturational account believe?

Answer 9

organisms follow a ‘specific genetic blueprint’ that unfolds to allow for specific behaviours

Question 10

how is the maturational account an extreme nativist developmental theory?

Answer 10

it does not consider any influence of the environment

Question 11

what do maturationists believe about the u-shaped development of motor abilities?

Answer 11

reflexes wane after 2 months and later re-emerge as a more specific and controlled form of intentional motor behaviours

Question 12

what do maturationists appeal to?

Answer 12

fixed motor milestones, and the belief that u-shaped motor development represents brain maturation

Question 13

maturationists: main causal factor in development

Answer 13

phylogeny

Question 14

maturationists: development characterised by

Answer 14

biological maturation

Question 15

behaviourists: main causal factor in development

Answer 15

environment

Question 16

behaviourists: development characterised by

Answer 16

behavioural reinforcement

Question 17

what evidence did gesell and ames find of fixed trajectories of development?

Answer 17

• cephalocaudal direction (control of head, torso, legs, feet)
• proximodistal direction (shoulders, hands, fingers)

Question 18

what was thelen’s alternative explanation of u-shaped motor development?

Answer 18

stepping does not appear, but it re-emerges in another context: as stepping wanes, supine kicking increases

Question 19

what does thelen believe?

Answer 19

external factors such as changes in body weight and limbs can determine motor abilities, rather than gesell’s belief of cortical maturation

Question 20

what type of theory does thelen believe?

Answer 20

developmental systems theory- argues for a role of both environment and physical changes in the body

Question 21

what does adolph’s ecological sensorimotor approach encourage?

Answer 21

the importance of how motor movements are dependent on the surrounding environment (physical body, social and cultural environments, and individual differences between infants)

Question 22

sensorimotor development- balance: what is optic flow?

Answer 22

tells adults how they are moving relative to their environment in order to regulate their balance

Question 23

sensorimotor development- balance: what did lee & aronson find?

Answer 23

infants who had just learned how to stand upright would fall over in the ‘swinging room’

this shows use of visual and sensory information to control balance

Question 24

sensorimotor development- locomotion: what did gibson & walk find?

Answer 24

infants would use sensory information to avoid the ‘perceptually dangerous’ drop off after 6 weeks

argues that the sensorimotor experience is vital in teaching infants the ‘affordances’ of locomotion depth cues

Question 25

sensorimotor development- locomotion: what did adolph find about infants’ locomotion?

Answer 25

• children who had just learned to crawl made riskier decisions
• experienced crawlers were more careful
• this experience did not transfer once they begun to walk

indicated that visual cues for locomotion are different when standing and crawling

Question 26

sensorimotor development- locomotion: what did adolph conclude?

Answer 26

sensorimotor learning is specific to the sensorimotor context it is experienced in

Question 27

sensorimotor development- influences of culture: where is the majority of research undertaken?

Answer 27

the majority of research on motor development is undertaken on infants in north american or european cities

Question 28

sensorimotor development- influences of culture: what can influence motor development?

Answer 28

differences in cultural child-rearing

• cradling in central asia can delay motor development to restricting infant movement
• infants of jamaican parents began to walk 1-2 months earlier due to different handling practices which encourage sitting and standing postures earlier
• the back to sleep campaign introduced motor delays as it made it more difficult for infants to navigate motor movement in different postures

Question 29

what drives motor development?

Answer 29

1. phylogenetic factors
2. physical changes
3. sensorimotor learning
4. culture
5. social environment

Question 30

what phylogenetic factors drive motor development?

Answer 30

altriciality, cortical maturation, neonatal reflexes

Question 31

what physical changes drive motor development?

Answer 31

weight, size, limbs, posture

Question 32

how does sensorimotor learning drive motor development?

Answer 32

specific postural cues

Question 33

how does culture drive motor development?

Answer 33

different child-rearing practices

Question 34

how does social environment drive motor development?

Answer 34

social cues to behaviour, responses, and context

Question 35

what does piaget’s sensorimotor period argue?

Answer 35

the first period, between 0-2 years, argues that the first stages of cognitive development are based in sensorimotor abilities