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1-093 - Understanding Motor Activity in Infants: The Role of Parent-Child Interaction

Thu, March 21, 12:30 to 2:00pm, Baltimore Convention Center, Floor: Level 3, Room 349

Session Type: Paper Symposium

Integrative Statement

As infants acquire new postural (e.g., sitting) and locomotor (e.g., crawling and walking) skills they increase their possibility to explore their physical and social environment. Self-initiated exploratory behavior in infants is in its turn a fundamental factor for cognitive, social, emotional and motor development (Gibson, 1988 among others). Parenting provides one of the most important components of the social environment during infancy, yet little is known about the role of parenting behaviors in relation to motor development. In this symposium three papers will highlight different aspects of parent-child interaction in relation to motor development of infants.
The first paper shows that when infants acquire new locomotor abilities the mothers adjust their behavior towards their infants during free play. In the second paper, the results show that parents respond differently to vocalizations depending on the actual locomotor behavior (moving vs stationary) of the infants, especially in infants with atypical development. The third paper shows that the motor activity observed in a separation-reunion situation might be the expression of the mother-infant attachment relationship as well as an expression of the child exploratory system.
Together, these results suggest reciprocal relationships between parenting behaviors and infant motor behaviors (e.g. locomotion and play). Increased understanding of parenting in relation to motor development can inform prevention and intervention programs aimed at improving motor development in both typically and atypically developing children, and should be a focus of future research.

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