RUI: An Investigation of Short and Long Term Effects of Cradling on Development

许多发展理论都是建立在这样一个前提上的，即自由活动对婴儿的健康发展是必要的，限制活动是有害的。然而，这些理论是基于对西方婴儿的研究，这些婴儿的看护人采用鼓励运动的育儿方法，而在孤儿院等贫困环境中长大的孩子被剥夺了自由活动的机会，也被剥夺了社会互动和情感。在如此贫困的环境中长大的婴儿表现出全面的发育迟缓，这并不一定与运动受限直接相关。本项目利用难得的机会，通过考察中亚塔吉克斯坦“gahvora”摇篮的使用情况，研究活动受限对婴儿发育的长期影响。婴儿在gahvora的活动受到限制，但这些婴儿沉浸在家庭生活中，因此没有被剥夺社会互动。研究者Karasik， Adolph和Tamis-LeMonda是在他们的国家科学基金会资助的横断面研究的基础上建立的，他们在研究中描述了婴儿使用摇篮的变化，并探索了它与运动发育变异性的关系。目前的项目采用纵向抽样的方法来研究限制运动对12到20个月大的婴儿运动技能的同时影响，以及在3到5岁时停止使用摇篮后的长期影响。这项工作还将为婴儿运动技能对其他领域发展的级联效应提供见解，例如与物体和人的互动。本研究探讨了发展心理学的核心问题，包括早期运动经验和受限运动对婴幼儿运动发展的影响。特别是，该研究探讨了限制是否对运动发育有直接和持久的影响。数据将通过databary.org视频数据共享库与更广泛的科学界共享。该项目将通过提供研究方法和发展科学方面的培训，吸引美国和国外的本科生和研究人员。

Many developmental theories are built on the premise that freedom to move is necessary for healthy infant development and restricted movement is harmful. However, these theories were based on studies comparing Western infants whose caregivers used childrearing practices that encourage movement to children reared in impoverished environments such as orphanages in which they are deprived of opportunities to move freely but are also deprived of social interaction and affection. Infants raised in such impoverished environments display sweeping developmental delays that are not necessarily tied directly to restricted movement. This project capitalizes on a rare chance to study long-term effects of restricted movement on infant development by examining the use of a "gahvora" cradle in Tajikistan, Central Asia. Infants experience restricted movement in the gahvora but these infants are immersed in family life and therefore not otherwise deprived of social interaction. Investigators Karasik, Adolph, and Tamis-LeMonda build upon the findings from their NSF-funded cross-sectional study in which they characterized variation in cradle use in infancy and explored how it relates to variability in motor development. The current project uses longitudinal sampling to examine concurrent effects of restricted movement on motor skills in infancy in 12- to 20-month-olds and long-term consequences after cradle use has ceased, at three to five years of age. This work will also provide insights into cascading effects of infant motor skills on development in other domains such as interactions with objects and people.This study examines core issues in developmental psychology, including the effects of early motor experience and restricted movement on infant and child motor development. In particular, the study addresses whether restriction has immediate and long-lasting influence on motor development. Data will be shared with the broader scientific community through the Databrary.org video data-sharing library. This project will engage undergraduate students and researchers in the U.S. and abroad by offering training in research methods and developmental science.