Work

Reaching to the Self: The Development of Infants’ Ability to Localize Targets on the Body

Year: 2019

Type: article

Abstract: This study focused on the development of infants’ sensorimotor knowledge about the layout of their bodies. Little is known about the development of the body as a reaching space, despite the importance of this skill for many self-directed adaptive behaviors, such as removing foreign stimuli from the skin or scratching an itch. A new method was developed in which vibrating targets were placed on the heads and arms of 7- to 21-month-old infants ( N = 78) to test reaching localization of targets. Manual localization improved with age, and visual localization was associated with successful reaching. Use of the ipsilateral or contralateral hand varied with body region: Infants primarily used the ipsilateral hand for head targets but the contralateral hand for arm targets, for which ipsilateral reaches were not biomechanically possible. The results of this research highlight a previously understudied form of self-knowledge involving a functional capacity to reach to tactile targets on the body surface.

Source: Psychological Science

DOI: 10.1177/0956797619850168

Authors: Jackleen E. Leed, Lisa K. Chinn, Jeffrey J. Lockman

Institution: Tulane University

Language: English

Topic: Child and Animal Learning Development

Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology

Field: Psychology

Domain: Social Sciences

SDG: Good health and well-being

Open Access status: green

Funders: National Institutes of Health, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development