Impact of extrinsic factors on fine motor performance of children attending day care

Carolina Corsi,Mariana Martins Dos Santos,Luísa De Andrade Perez Marques,Nelci Adriana Cicuto Ferreira Rocha

doi:10.1016/j.rppede.2016.03.007

Carolina Corsi, Mariana Martins Dos Santos + Show 2 more

Open Access

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rppede.2016.03.007

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Abstract

ObjectiveTo assess the impact of extrinsic factors on fine motor performance of children aged 2-years old. Methods73 children attending public and 21 private day care centers were assessed. Day care environment was evaluated using the Infant/Toddler Environment Rating Scale–Revised Edition (ITERS-R), fine motor performance was assessed through the Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development–III (BSITD-III), socioeconomic data, maternal education and time of start at the day care were collected through interviews. Spearman's correlation coefficient was calculated to assess the association between the studied variables. ResultsThe time at the day care was positively correlated with the children's performance in some fine motor tasks of the BSITD-III, showing that the activities developed in day care centers were important for the refinement of specific motor skills, while the overall fine motor performance by the scale was associated with maternal education and the ITERS-R scale sub-item “language and understanding”. ConclusionsExtrinsic factors such as higher maternal education and quality of day care centers are associated with fine motor performance in children attending day care.

Highlights

The first years of a child’s life are characterized by constant biological and psychosocial changes, which lead to major acquisitions in the motor, social-affective, and cognitive domains.[1]
RossettiFerreira et al.[17] highlight that children insertion in day care centers offers a possibility of additional stimuli, as they interact with other children and caregivers
In an attempt to fill this gap in the literature, the aim of this study was to investigate the impact of extrinsic factors, represented by the quality and length of stay in day care, level of maternal education, and family socioeconomic status, on fine motor development of children aged two years

Summary

Introduction

The first years of a child’s life are characterized by constant biological and psychosocial changes, which lead to major acquisitions in the motor, social-affective, and cognitive domains.[1]. There is evidence that low socioeconomic status8---11 and family and school environment of poor quality can negatively influence the development of healthy children,[8,10,12,13] while favorable environmental conditions, such as adequate stimuli, higher maternal education and socioeconomic status seem to positively influence children’s motor and cognitive development.8,14---16. RossettiFerreira et al.[17] highlight that children insertion in day care centers offers a possibility of additional stimuli, as they interact with other children and caregivers. This benefit is directly related to the quality of the child care provided

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