PMID: 9553733Apr 29, 1998Paper

Evidence for a phase transition in the early development of prehension

Developmental Psychobiology
R H WimmersB Hopkins

Abstract

A longitudinal study was conducted to examine the hypothesis that the development of prehension during the first 5 months of life is characterized by the presence of a discontinuous phase transition. Ten infants were observed weekly from 8 to 24 weeks of age. Video recordings were made of movements toward an attractive object which were classified according to two behavioral categories: reaching without grasping and reaching with grasping. The time evolution of the relative incidence of these behavioral categories was analyzed statistically. Evidence was found for a sudden jump from a (developmental) state in which reaching without grasping is predominant to a state in which reaching with grasping is predominant. Evidence was also found for bimodality, inaccessibility, and anomalous variance. In combination, these findings support the hypothesis that the investigated behavioral change constitutes a discontinuous phase transition. The behavioral change in question occurred at the moment in developmental time at which the attractor strength of reaching for objects as such relative to that of other behavioral activities appeared to be increased.

Citations

Aug 30, 2008·Psychological Review·Karen E AdolphFelix Gill-Alvarez
Apr 20, 2007·Neural Networks : the Official Journal of the International Neural Network Society·J Molina-VilaplanaJ López-Coronado
Aug 28, 2015·Infant Behavior & Development·Andréa Baraldi CunhaEloisa Tudella
Jul 21, 2004·Child Development·Michele A LoboGeert J P Savelsbergh
Aug 24, 2004·Developmental Science·Maartje E J Raijmakers, Peter C M Molenaar
Apr 28, 2012·Developmental Psychobiology·Nelci Adriana Cicuto Ferreira RochaEloisa Tudella
Jun 12, 2013·Developmental Psychobiology·George F MichelEmily C Marcinowski
Aug 19, 2014·Research in Developmental Disabilities·Daniele de Almeida SoaresEloisa Tudella
Dec 2, 2011·Human Movement Science·Raoul M BongersMarc Jeannerod
Nov 24, 2012·Autism : the International Journal of Research and Practice·Erin A KoterbaJana M Iverson
Jan 16, 2009·Developmental Science·Marco Del GiudiceChristian Keysers

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