Occupational therapy addresses fine motor skills throughout the lifespan, but there is limited evidence for how understanding a functional tool's purpose and the presence of environmental cues impact a transitioning infant's grasp pattern. Therefore, the researchers sought to determine if transitioning infants alter grasp on a functional object with the presence of an environmental cue. In a quasi-experimental study of transitioning infants aged 12 to 16 months (N=13), researchers presented a marker to participants with and without the presence of paper to determine the impact of environmental cues on functional tool use and grasp patterns. While trends in data were seen, there are no statistically significant findings as a result of this pilot study. The results confirm a trend in overall right-handed preference for transitioning infants when using a functional tool. On average, the transitioning infants initially make contact with the marker faster, maintain functional use of the marker longer, and utilize a more mature grasp pattern with the presence of an environmental cue. Future research is needed to confirm the impact of environmental cues on the development of transitioning infant grasp patterns. When working with transitioning infants, occupational therapists need to consider all environmental factors that may impact fine motor skills as they relate to functional tool use.

Creator

• Shepherd, Ellen

• Larson, Julie

• Denhart, Sydney

• Kovacs, Madison

• Fogo, Jennifer

• Coffey-Lumpkin, Mika

• Sexton, Shelby

Contributors

• Nichols, Alison

Publisher

• University of Indianapolis

Language

• en

Identifier

• Fogo.pdf

Keyword

• Occupational Therapy

Resource type

• Dissertation

Source

• S24

Rights statement

• http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/