motor development

Question 1

how was motor development traditionally explained?

Answer 1

mainly the result of neurological maturation

Question 2

what is the dominant modern theory of motor development?

Answer 2

Dynamic Systems Theory (DST)

Question 3

what do ‘dynamic’ and ‘system’ mean in DST?

Answer 3

dynamic : change over time
system : behaviour emerges from many interacting elements

Question 4

what does DST explain?

Answer 4

how behaviour changes over time through interaction between multiple factors

Question 5

what factors contribute to motor development according to DST?

Answer 5

strength and weight, neural mechanisms, posture control, balance, perceptual skills and motivation

Question 6

what motor milestones typically occur from birth to 5 months?

Answer 6

stepping reflex, mini push ups during tummy time, bouncing when held upright

Question 7

what motor milestones typically occur from 6-10 months?

Answer 7

sitting up, crawling, standing with support, cruising

Question 8

what motor milestones typically occur from 9-15 months?

Answer 8

pulling to stand, standing unsupported, first steps

Question 9

what motor milestones typically occur from 16-18 months?

Answer 9

dancing, climbing stairs with help, walking backward

Question 10

what is an ‘attractor’ in DST?

Answer 10

a stable state that most children reach (e.g. sitting, walking)

Question 11

do all children reach motor milestones in the same way?

Answer 11

no, children can reach milestones via different routes

Question 12

what drives motor development more that maturation alone?

Answer 12

experimentation, curiosity and learning

Question 13

is motor development sudden or gradual?

Answer 13

gradual ; skills do not suddenly ‘turn on’

Question 14

why does measurement frequency matter in motor development research?

Answer 14

daily vs monthly measurements can show very different developmental patterns

Question 15

what are fine motor skills?

Answer 15

skills using small muscles (e.g. grasping, object manipulation, drawing)

Question 16

what are gross motor skills?

Answer 16

skills using large muscles (e.g. sitting, crawling, walking, running)

Question 17

what is the stepping reflex?

Answer 17

coordinated, walking-like movement with alternating legs

Question 18

when does stepping reflex disappear?

Answer 18

around 2 months of age

Question 19

why does stepping reflex disappear according to DST?

Answer 19

legs gain weight faster than they gain strength

Question 20

what evidence shows stepping is not purely neurological maturity?

Answer 20

older babies step in water and younger babies step with ankle weights

Question 21

why does stepping reappear when babies are lying down?

Answer 21

because gravitational load is distributed

Question 22

why is independent sitting important for development?

Answer 22

supports reaching and exploration (Spencer et al 2000)

Question 23

how does sitting affect perception?

Answer 23

has cascading effects on perception, including depth and visual exploration

Question 24

how does sitting create new learning opportunities?

Answer 24

by enabling exploration of objects and shapes from new viewpoints

Question 25

what is figure/ground assignment?

Answer 25

ability to distinguish objects (figures) from the background

Question 26

why is figure/ground assignment important?

Answer 26

supports depth perception, attention and reaching

Question 27

what cues do adults use for figure/ground assignment?

Answer 27

symmetry, convexity and lower-region cues

Question 28

why do infants need figure/ground segregation?

Answer 28

to guide attention, eye movements and learning

Question 29

what two cues help infants identify figures?

Answer 29

motion and symmetry

Question 30

what did Ross-Sheeshy et al (2016) find about sitting infants?

Answer 30

sitting infants use symmetry as a cue for figure/ground assignment

Question 31

what does this suggest about sitting and depth perception?

Answer 31

sitting may be linked to improved depth perception

Question 32

what is reaching?

Answer 32

extending one or both hands to touch or grasp and object

Question 33

what do early reaches look like?

Answer 33

swiping movements

Question 34

when does reaching become more stable and how does grasping change with experience?

Answer 34

after independent sitting, and it becomes more anticipatory and controlled

Question 35

what does 'soft assembly' mean in reaching?

Answer 35

reaching emerges from the interaction of many changing factors

Question 36

what are 'sticky mittens'?

Answer 36

velcro mittens that help infants contact and grasp objects

Question 37

how was sticky mitten training conducted?

Answer 37

10 mins a day for 2 weeks

Question 38

what effect did sticky mittens have?

Answer 38

increased reaching and grasping after just one week

Question 39

how long did the effects of sticky mitten training last?

Answer 39

up to 12 months

Question 40

what criticism exists of sticky mitten studies?

Answer 40

some studies found non-sticky mittens led to better performance

Question 41

what is the A-not-B task?

Answer 41

task where infants repeatedly find a hidden object at location A, then incorrectly search A when it's been moved to B

Question 42

what age group does the A-not-B error typically occur in?

Answer 42

8-10 months

Question 43

what was Piaget's explanation for the A-not-B error?

Answer 43

lack of object permanence

Question 44

how does DST explain the A-not-B error?

Answer 44

reflects past experience, attention and motor memory across nested timescales

Question 45

what factors make A-not-B errors persist and what reduces them?

Answer 45

persist : no reaching, no objects, unmarked locations, long delays, consistent posture reduces : changing posture between trials

Question 46

when does self-locomotion usually begin and when do toddlers typically begin walking?

Answer 46

around 8 months (crawling), and around 13-14 months

Question 47

are motor skills context dependent?

Answer 47

yes

Question 48

what did Adolph (1997) find about crawling vs walking?

Answer 48

knowledge does not transfer between the two

Question 49

how did infants behave on slopes?

Answer 49

67% fell down all slopes but learned with experience

Question 50

why is falling important in motor development?

Answer 50

helps infants learn through low-impact errors

Question 51

how often did toddlers fall in Han & Adolph (2020)?

Answer 51

563 falls among 138 toddlers

Question 52

how did falling affect infant's behaviour?

Answer 52

did not : infants resumed play quickly

Question 53

why are falls usually not harmful?

Answer 53

small body size and quick protective reactions

Question 54

how often did infants fuss after falling?

Answer 54

only about 4% of falls

Question 55

what role do errors play in development?

Answer 55

frequent, low-impact errors encourage practise and learning

Question 56

which age group has the highest pedestrian injury risk?

Answer 56

children aged 5-14 years

Question 57

where do most child pedestrian injuries occur and why are these places common?

Answer 57

mid-block crossings, often provide shorter routes e.g. to school

Question 58

how do 6-10 year olds cross roads compared to adults?

Answer 58

enter more slowly and accept smaller traffic gaps

Question 59

how does crossing with friends affect adolescents?

Answer 59

take greater risks than when alone

Question 60

what drives motor development overall?

Answer 60

exploration, curiosity and learning by experience

Question 61

is motor development ever complete?

Answer 61

no, its an ongoing process

Question 62

how is walking linked to language development?

Answer 62

walking correlates with both receptive and productive vocab

Question 63

why do walking children communicate more than crawling children?

Answer 63

make more bids for communication