Nature vs Nurture During Infancy

Nature vs Nurture During Infancy
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Nature vs Nurture during Infancy
Infancy
The developmental period from birth to the baby's first birthday is called infancy which has a significant influence on physical and cognitive growth. Some researchers and developmental psychologists also extend this period to the second year after birth. All interactions are a source of new information for the child. Colours, noises, hugs, food and smiles are some of the common communication patterns which are modifying the child's behaviour through trial and error strategies daily. It is why parents are highly concerned for adequate nutrition, healthy interactions and constructive play with children at this stage. It also requires newer research to educate parents by discovering the latest facts and inform them about potential harms regarding their child's healthy development.
Physical Development
Physical development is at its pinnacle during the infancy period. Children learn to control their neck movements, exercise with their hands and feet, unlike fully grown human beings and utilize their energies through crawling and walking. Each milestone is keenly observed by the parents denoting healthy development and observing if any behaviour is delayed. Physically, babies have long been subjected to massages which have known to be relieving their tightened muscles and stimulating sufficient growth. Recent research found confirming evidence for the effectiveness of massages given to children during their first year of life. The study investigated changes in body weight, length, the circumference of the arms as well as behaviour changes such as the differences in frequency and duration of suckling (Gultom et al., 2019). Results found significantly positive and beneficial results of massaging and thus, imply that mothers should be educated about the procedure and efficacy of this technique in all settings.
Cognitive Development
The primary cognitive skills a child develops and later polishes is problem-solving. It is from the first day; the child starts to explore his environment in search of his needs and modifying his behaviour according to its consequences. Touching, holding and transferring objects in their hands, turning heads towards bright colours or favourable voices, responding to adult's expressions and manipulating toys to turn their light/sound on are all progressively developing problem-solving skills. A longitudinal study assessed 23 infants at different ages to perform a means-end task. The two tasks were designed to produce desirable results but with changed paths. The child had to either pull a towel or turn a rotating table to obtain the desired object. It was found that intentionality developed earlier at an approximate age of 7 months, while the ability to transfer knowledge between tasks emerged at nine months of age (Babik et al., 2019). Both indicating the elements of problem-solving show how quickly infants develop concerning their cognitive growth.
Nutritional Changes
Termed as a crucial period for development, infancy requires adequate nutrition for the child to flourish well. Throughout his...