1. Effects of Early Stimulation and Deprivation
Chapter 6
© 2012 McGraw-Hill Companies. All Rights Reserved.
McGraw-Hill/Irwin

2. The general philosophical trend has been that
stimulation is always “good” and deprivation is
always “bad.”

3. Questions Can overstimulation occur?
Is deprivation ever in the child’s best interest?
When are the best times for stimulation or the worst times for deprivation?
Is stimulation worthwhile for the acquisition of all human behaviors?
Are there some behaviors that cannot be facilitated by early exposure to stimulating experiences?

4. Effects of Early Stimulation
“Bringing up Superbaby”
Parents believe early educational stimulation is valuable
Pressure to learn at an early age may lead to future emotional, physical, or creative problems

5. Programs to Enhance Early Motor Development
Programs designed to stimulate early motor development fall into two categories
No programming
Programming

6. Programs to Enhance Early Motor Development
No programming
These programs do not emphasize specific practice of future motor skills
Instruction should be withheld until the infant learns body control
Infants are to be left on their back until they are capable of changing the position
Nonrestrictive clothing advocated
Hard-soled shoes are discouraged

7. Programs to Enhance Early Motor Development
Programming
Parent takes an active role in moving the baby or limbs of the infant during activity
Infant walkers, bouncers, etc., are encouraged
Specialized equipment is available
Is more external stimulation always better?
Many programs make indiscriminate claims about success of early motor development

8. Programs to Enhance Early Motor Development
Little research is available to substantiate either “no-programming” or “programming”
Withhold structured instruction at very young ages
Allow babies to learn on own
Place babies in stimulating environments
“parents are encouraged to provide a safe, nurturing, and minimally structured play environment for their infant”

9. Gymboree
Preschoolers need to be provided with certain types of play activities that are essential in development but not available at home
Program has seven levels from 0 months to 5 years of age
Activities
Balancing
Fundamental movement
Locomotion switching
Changing directions/speeds
Socialization
imagination

10. Gymboree Little research available to substantiate claims of success
Lofty claims are not made, but there is no controlled research to suggest that this program is superior to “no program”
Fun is most important in Gymboree program

11. Swim Programs
The American Academy of Pediatrics and American Red Cross state that
Infant and toddler aquatic programs DO NOT decrease the risk of drowning
Children are not ready for swimming lessons until their 4th birthday

12. Swim Programs Hypernatremia Catch phrases Water intoxication
Occurs when an individual ingests so much water that the body’s electrolytes are reduced and kidneys cannot filter excess fluid
Common in those who practice forced or frequent submersion
Catch phrases
Water adjustment
Water readiness
Water orientation

13. Swim Programs Giardia Precautions
A parasitic condition which develops due to cyst growth in the digestion tract
Causes diarrhea and is easily transmitted to others in a pool
Precautions
Shower after class
Wear tight-legged diapers/pants
Do not participate with illness/diarrhea

14. Swim Programs
Effects of gases and aerosols found in an indoor swimming environment
Children involved in infant swim programs had pulmonary cell damage and modifications to the permeability of the epithelial barrier in the lungs
Risk of asthma
Recurring bronchitis

15. Swim Program Guidelines
Children are not ready for formal swim lessons until their 4th birthday
Avoid total submersion
Provide measure for avoiding fecal contamination in the pool
Children should never be dropped or pushed into water
Babies chill easily; limit exposure

18. Suzuki Method of Violin Playing
The child begins lessons at 2 to 2 ½ years
The child’s motivation is important
Child should not be forced into taking lessons
A properly sized violin is used
Competition discouraged
Little is known about the residual effects of such early programming

19. Head Start Programs
Designed to give financially disadvantaged children a “head start” in education
The major goal of Head Start is to “enhance the social competence of children from lower income families”
Social competence = ability to deal with the present environment in school and for life

20. Facts About Head Start
Began in 1965 as part of President Johnson’s War on Poverty
“disadvantaged child was falling further and further behind with each school year.”

21. Head Start Programs
Head Start Family and Child Experience Survey (FACES)
The children COULD NOT
Identify or write the letters of the alphabet
Copy complex geometric figures
Demonstrate “right from left” or “top from bottom” in reading

22. Head Start Programs
Head Start Family and Child Experience Survey (FACES)
Surveyed the cognitive, social, emotional, and physical development of Head Start children
Generally, Head Start children were found to “very often” use their free time in acceptable ways,” “follow the teacher’s directions,” and “help in putting things away”

23. Head Start Programs
Head Start Family and Child Experience Survey (FACES)
Overall conclusion was that Head Start children are ready for school on the basis of how much they had learned by the end of kindergarten

24. Head Start Programs
Children of Head Start programs were 10 times more likely to complete a high school education without failure compared to their socioeconomic counterparts
A D.C. Study reported that programs like Head Start and other preschool programs affected children’s long-term performance positively
Educational gap is narrowed
Vocabulary
Writing
Social skills

25. Infant Walkers
Designed to support babies who cannot yet walk independently
There are many questions about safety and efficacy of the device to promote early walking

26. Infant Walkers

27. Johnny and Jimmy
In 1935, two twin brothers were observed for 22 months to determine a normal progression in motor development
Johnny was given toys and stimulation, practice, and experience in movement activities
Jimmy was given few toys and had minimal movement experience

28. Johnny and Jimmy
The researcher concluded that readiness, practice, attitude, and physical growth were all particularly important factors influencing human movement at an early age

30. Effects of Early Deprivation
Hopi cradleboards
A subject of research in the 1930s
Up until 1 year of age, Hopi babies may be swaddled and tied to a board
Legs are extended, arms free
Although, these babies were not permitted typical “infant” movements, when free of the board, these infants exhibited the expected movement sequences of noncradled infants

31. Early Deprivation Deprivation Dwarfism
Psychosocial dwarfism
Psychosocial short stature
A negative influence on human growth created by serious deprivation or adverse stimulation

32. Early Deprivation Deprivation Dwarfism
An emotional disturbance that is registered in the higher centers of the brain
Information is conveyed to hypothalamus where growth hormone, somatotropin, is released
When growth is affected, motor development may also be affected

33. Early Deprivation Deprivation Dwarfism
Infants who are hospitalized for extended periods fail to gain weight and develop respiratory infections
Symptoms disappear when infant is returned home to a more stimulating environment
Also occurs in situations where children are not nurtured in a loving and caring environment despite proper and plentiful nutrition

34. Early Deprivation Anna
A victim of severe deprivation due to isolation (1946)
Left in an attic room until six years of age
When discovered she showed signs of minimal intelligence, could not walk or talk, and was extremely malnourished

35. Early Deprivation Anna At age 8 years
Vision, hearing normal
Mental age was 19 months
Social maturity was at 23 months
By the age of 10 years, Anna was able to walk and run clumsily, string beads, but did not speak in complete sentences
Died at age 11 years

36. Early Deprivation Young Savage of Abeyron
Victor, a young boy found in the woods of France in 1799 at 11 or 12 years of age
He could not talk, trotted rather than walk, chewed like a rodent, and was intellectually delayed
“Whole life was a completely animal existence”
Despite attempts to remediate, he showed little improvement intellectually and died at 40 years of age

37. Stimulation and Deprivation Concepts
Critical period
A time of particular or maximum sensitivity to environmental
If a child is stimulated during the sensitive period, the associated behavior is likely to occur
For environmental stimulation to be effective:
Readiness
Specific time limit
Permanent and durable imprint

38. Stimulation and Deprivation Concepts
Readiness
The establishment of the minimum characteristics necessary for a particular human behavior to be acquired
Depends on an adequate level of physical growth, associated neurological patterns, and sufficient motivation

39. Stimulation and Deprivation Concepts
Catch-up
The human power” to stabilize and return” to a predetermined behavior or growth pattern “after being pushed off trajectory”
Associated with physical growth and motor development

40. Stimulation and Deprivation Concepts
Example of a child’s catch-up growth following a period of anorexia