CHD2220 TEST 2 CH 2 5 6 7 CH 5 Perceptual and Physical Development in Infancy Home From the moment of first human contact the newborn begins to sense the physical presence of caregivers and to react physically to caregiving behaviors The quality of the transactions between infants and their caregivers affect the quality of perceptual and motor development Physical Growth First 2 years Changes in Height and Weight Infants grow faster in the first two years than in any later period including adolescence Average newborn weighs 7 lbs and 20 inches Birth weight doubles by 5 months and triples by 1st bday Height increases by about half in the first year 5 6 in 2nd year Babies grow in spurts rather than in an even progression If a mother s breast milk is inadequate a baby will not gain adequate weight Changes in Body Proportions Changes in infant body proportions progress according to the two fundamental principles of physical growth cephalocaudal and proximodisal The head and upper body growing before the lower body characterize the cephalocaudal principle of physical growth An example of cephalocaudal physical growth can be seen through a fetus head being the length of the body only 8 weeks after conception The body growing from the center outward characterizes the proximodisal principle of physical growth This principle reverses just before puberty when the hands and feet grow rapidly before other parts of the body mature Childproofing the Environment Childproofing requires progressive adjustment and elaboration synchronized to the rapidly increasing ability of the infant and toddler to defeat the protective hardware employed by caregivers You begin childproofing once your baby begins to crawl creep walk and run Nutrition in Infancy development Breast feeding vs formula has positive effects on long term cognitive intellectual Breast feeding offers distinct immunological benefit that formula cannot duplicate This immunological protection is transmitted to the infant in the colostrum a thin yellowish fluid secreted by the breasts for several days before milk is produced Colostrum hydrates the baby as well as gives the baby the moms immunity allow it to fight infections this is important since neonates have weak immune systems o Contains antibodies that cannot be duplicated in formula CHD2220 TEST 2 CH 2 5 6 7 Breast feeding is tied to o Reduction in SIDS o Reduction in childhood obesity o ADHD o It also reduces the amount of respiratory infections cutting the amount in Breast feeding mothers o Return more quickly to their pre pregnancy weight o Have lower rates of breast and ovarian cancer than non breast feeding mothers American Academy of Pediatrics recommend exclusively breast feeding for the first 6 months of life and continuing to after solid foods are introduced Formula s are made of modified cows milk and are acceptable for replacing breast feeding they just will not have as strong of an impact on the advancement of an infant s development However formula removes important proteins needed for babies Combining breast feeding with formula is not recommended it cause the neonate to experience an upset stomach Development of the Brain Structure of the Brain Nerve cell production stops just before birth yet the structure of the brain continues to evolve through the first 10 years of life Central nervous system most complicated physical structure in the body Proliferation of nerve cells is exteremly rapid during the early prenantal stage 100 billion nerve cells in newborn Synapse axon of one cells butts up against the dendrite of another cell forming a microscopic gap Neurotransmitters impulses are transmitted across the synapse by chemicals Myelination axons develop an insulating fatty coating that improves the efficiency of nerve impulse transmission Synaptogenesis the development of synpases that increases a lot during the first 3 years of life Single neuron may form 15000 synapses with adjoining nerve cells The pattern of neurons extending their axons towards dendrites is predetermined by genetic forces and fueled by proteins and enzymes The brain is arranged by patterned stimulation from multiple sources from the routine interaction of caregivers o Profound effects on the development of brain An adult brain contains only half the synapses it had in childhood The brain must not only have the capacity to deal with the typical requirements of the system but have the ability to adapt in the face of new and unanticipated challenges CHD2220 TEST 2 CH 2 5 6 7 The nervous system is an evolving system of circuits that is designed w more potential capacity than it is ever likely to need or use Genetic influences primarily drive the formation of the brains architecture in the prenatal stage of development Plasticity of the Brain Plasticity of the brain refers to the brains ability to adapt Plasticity allows us to survive with a brain because it reconnects to other parts of the brain allowing the brain to have resilience Allows the brain to have the ability to reprogram itself to keep the brain safe if injury occurs it is highest in young children Hemispherectomy the radical removal of half a child s brain in the treatment of Use it or lose it principle pathways that get used repeatedly survive those that go extreme cases of brain seizures unused disappear o End of 2nd yr 10th year Pruning synapses and cells that are not stimulated are eliminated through a massive and continuing destructive process Perceptual Development How Perception is studied Sensation the ability to passively receive and register information concerning internal and external events and it transmits that information to the CNS Perception the infants active searching for information and the processing of that sensory information by the brain Challenges to researchers o Infants are more vulnerable to injury than children at older ages o Infants are incapable of expressing their willingness to participate in a research study o Incapable of providing verbal response to questions or probes The Visual Preference Method Robert Fantz study of infant s stimuli fixation The study revealed that infants preferred organized and patterned stimuli to disorganized arrays of lines Electroencephalography The measurement and interpretation of electrical activity in the brain This study shows how verbal stimulation of infants directly modulates brain activity during a perceptual task Habituation dishabituation procedure The more an infant
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