Developmental differences in infants' use of an object's shape to grasp it securely.
This study examined twenty two 11- and 13-month-old infants' approach and grasp of two objects-one symmetric and one asymmetric-in an effort to understand infants' use of shape information to plan motor action. At first contact, all infants grasped the asymmetrical object further from its center of mass than the symmetrical object. In addition, results highlighted developmental differences in infants' abilities to correct for less stable hand placements, to maintain control of the objects without dropping, strategies used to obtain the objects, and latencies to grasp the objects. Older infants showed more effective skills in each of the aforementioned areas. Implications for our understanding of the development of processing of visual information for action are discussed.
Barrett
Tracy M
TM
Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, Duke University, Durham, NC 27708-0086, USA.
Needham
Amy
A
D002657:Child Development; D005260:Female; D018737:Hand Strength; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D009048:Motor Skills / Q000502:physiology*; D011597:Psychomotor Performance / Q000502:physiology*