Author: Abbott A, Bartlett D, Kneale Fanning J, Kramer J
Source: Pediatric Physical Therapy Volume 12 Number 2, Summer 2000
The article examines the relationship between motor development at eight months of age and characteristics of the home environment including parental expectations of motor achievement. Forty three children and their mothers participated in the study. When the infants were five months of age, the mothers were asked to predict their child's motor development abilities at eight months of age based on the maternal version of the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (MAIMS). AT eight months each child was assessed by a physical therapist using the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS) and the home environment was evaluated using the HOME Inventory during a home visit. All home environments had similar scores on the HOME Inventory and all the mothers had high expectations for their child's motor development at eight months. All the children scored similarly high on the eight-month AIMS assessment.
The authors suggest that these results support the notion that high parental expectations and rich home environments contribute to higher motor development scores. Without a more diverse group of infants and mothers with differing expectations and environmental resources this is difficult to confirm. The findings are consistent with other evidence that environmental factors influence development but further study is need for conclusive evidence.
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