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Full-Text Articles in Psychology
Developmental Changes In Postural Stability During The Performance Of A Precision Manual Task, Jeffrey M. Haddad, Laura J. Claxton, Dawn Melzer, Joseph Hamill, Richard E. A. Van Emmerik
Developmental Changes In Postural Stability During The Performance Of A Precision Manual Task, Jeffrey M. Haddad, Laura J. Claxton, Dawn Melzer, Joseph Hamill, Richard E. A. Van Emmerik
Psychology Faculty Publications
Posture becomes integrated with other goal-directed behaviors early in infancy and continues to develop into the second decade of life. However, the developmental time course over which posture is stabilized relative to the base of support during a dynamic manual precision task has not been examined. Postural-manual integration was assessed in 7-year-olds, 10-year-olds, and adults using a postural-manual task in which task precision (target fitting size) and postural difficulty (reaching distance to a target) were manipulated. The main dependent variable was postural time-to-contact (TtC). Results indicated systematic age effects in which TtC was shortest in the 7-year-olds, increased in the …
The Control Of Posture In Newly Standing Infants Is Task-Dependent, Laura J. Claxton, Dawn Melzer, Jyoong Hyun Ryu, Jeffrey M. Haddad
The Control Of Posture In Newly Standing Infants Is Task-Dependent, Laura J. Claxton, Dawn Melzer, Jyoong Hyun Ryu, Jeffrey M. Haddad
Psychology Faculty Publications
The postural sway patterns of newly standing infants were compared under two conditions: standing while either holding or not holding a toy. Infants exhibited a lower magnitude of postural sway and more complex sway patterns when holding the toy. These changes suggest infants adapt postural sway in a manner that facilitates visually fixating on and stabilizing the toy in their hand. When simply standing, infants exhibited postural sway patterns that appeared to be more exploratory in nature. Exploratory sway patterns may allow infants to learn the affordances of their new standing posture. These results demonstrate newly standing infants are capable …