Thammasat University students interested in the allied health sciences, neonatal studies, education, cognitive development, genetics, psychological science, and related subjects may find it useful to participate in a free 30 July Zoom webinar on Developmental Science: The role of early sensorimotor experiences in the motor and cognitive development of children: Biological factors and environmental affordances.
The event, on Tuesday, 30 July 2024 at noon Bangkok time, is presented by the Graduate School of Education, Faculty of Education, The University of Tokyo, Japan.
The TU Library collection includes several books about different aspects of childhood cognitive development.
According to the event webpage:
Summary: Sensorimotor delays and disabilities may have a profound effect on the motor and cognitive development of children. For example, preterm birth, cerebral palsy, and arthrogryposis significantly reduce children’s spontaneous movements and their ability to play with objects, thereby decreasing opportunities to experiment with the environment and learn through trial and error. On a positive note, enriched environmental affordances may positively influence children’s development. Research has shown that socioeconomic status and home affordances (such as toys and adequate stimulation) positively affect the motor, language, and cognitive development of children with motor delays. Additionally, physical therapy interventions (e.g., STAR-Play) and wearable technologies (e.g., exoskeletons like P-WREX and Playskin LiftTM) may improve spontaneous movements, reaching space, and object exploration in children with motor delays or disabilities. Importantly, enhanced object exploration is directly linked to advances in children’s cognitive development.
Students are welcome to register for the free event at this link.
https://www.cedep.p.u-tokyo.ac.jp/eventlisting/science/ds_seminar12/
The speaker will be Assistant Professor Iryna Babik, Department of Psychological Science, Boise State University, a public research university in Boise, Idaho, the United States of America.
In 2018, Assistant Professor Iryna Babik coauthored an article, Sitting Together and Reaching to Play (START-Play): Protocol for a Multisite Randomized Controlled Efficacy Trial on Intervention for Infants With Neuromotor Disorders, published in Physical Therapy.
The article’s abstract follows:
Background. There is limited research examining the efficacy of early physical therapy on infants with neuromotor dysfunction. In addition, most early motor interventions have not been directly linked to learning, despite the clear association between motor activity and cognition during infancy.
Objective. The aim of this project is to evaluate the efficacy of Sitting Together And Reaching To Play (START-Play), an intervention designed to target sitting, reaching, and motor-based problem solving to advance global development in infants with motor delays or neuromotor dysfunction.
Design. This study is a longitudinal multisite randomized controlled trial. Infants in the START-Play group are compared to infants receiving usual care in early intervention (EI).
Setting. The research takes place in homes in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Washington, and Virginia.
Participants. There will be 140 infants with neuromotor dysfunction participating, beginning between 7 to 16 months of age. Infants will have motor delays and emerging sitting skill.
Intervention. START-Play provides individualized twice-weekly home intervention for 12 weeks with families to enhance cognition through sitting, reaching, and problem-solving activities for infants. Ten interventionists provide the intervention, with each child assigned 1 therapist.
Measurements. The primary outcome measure is the Bayley III Scales of Infant Development. Secondary measures include change in the Early Problem Solving Indicator, change in the Gross Motor Function Measure, and change in the type and duration of toy contacts during reaching. Additional measures include sitting posture control and parent-child interaction.
Limitations. Limitations include variability in usual EI care and the lack of blinding for interventionists and families.
Conclusions. This study describes usual care in EI across 4 US regions and compares outcomes of the START-Play intervention to usual care.
A subsequent research article was coauthored in 2021 in Physical Therapy:
The article’s abstract:
Objective. Our objective was to evaluate the efficacy of the Sitting Together and Reaching to Play (START-Play) intervention in young infants with neuromotor disorders. Method.This randomized controlled trial compared usual care early intervention (UC-EI) withSTART-Playplus UC-EI. Analyses included 112 infants with motor delay (55 UC-EI, 57 START-Play) recruited at 7 to 16 months of age across 5 sites. START-Play included twice-weekly home visits with the infant and caregiver for 12 weeks provided by physical therapists trained in the START-Play intervention; UC-EI was not disrupted. Outcome measures were the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development, Third Edition (Bayley); the Gross Motor Function Measure; reaching frequency; and the Assessment of Problem Solving in Play (APSP).
Comparisons for the full group as well as separate comparisons for infants with mild motor delay and infants with significant motor delay were conducted. Piecewise linear mixed modeling estimated short-and long-term effects. Results. For infants with significant motor delay, positive effects of START-Play were observed at 3 months for Bayley cognition, Bayley fine motor, and APSP and at 12 months for Bayley fine motor and reaching frequency outcomes. For infants with mild motor delay, positive effects of START-Play for the Bayley receptive communication outcome were found.
For the UC-EI group, the only difference between groups was a positive effect for the APSP outcome, observed at 3 months. Conclusion. START-Play may advance reaching, problem solving, cognitive, and fine motor skills for young infants with significant motor delay over UC-EI in the short term. START-Play in addition to UC-EI may not improve motor/cognitive outcomes for infants with milder motor delays over and above usual care.
Impact. Concepts of embodied cognition, applied to early intervention in the START-Play intervention, may serve to advance cognition and motor skills in young infants with significant motor delays over usual care early intervention.
Lay Summary.
If you have a young infant with significant delays in motor skills, your physical therapist can work with you to develop play opportunities to enhance your child’s problem solving, such as that used in the START-Play intervention, in addition to usual care to help your child advance cognitive and motor skills.
From the article’s Introduction:
Early intervention for infants with developmental delays is based on the premise of early neuroplasticity. Theoretically, building a strong framework for early brain pathways provides the architecture for future complex skills, both cognitive and motor. The Sitting Together and Reaching to Play (START-Play) clinical trial proposed a theory of change in which early motor skills of sitting and reaching interact with and support the development of problem-solving skills to advance cognitive and global development. The theory holds that for young infants with motor delays, the critical timing of achieving sitting and reaching within a milieu of environmental learning opportunities could change the trajectory of cognitive advancement.
(All images courtesy of Wikimedia Commons)