Development of self‐feeding behavior in children with typical development and those with arm movement impairments

Abstract

Self‐feeding is a critical self‐care skill that unites motor abilities (e.g., grasping and transporting utensils/food to the mouth) and cognitive abilities (e.g., using a spoon as a tool). This cross‐sectional study assessed self‐feeding behavior in a sample of 38 children with typical development (TD) and compared it between 18 of those children and 18 age‐ and sex‐matched peers with arm movement impairments (MI). Children were assessed with a bowl of cereal and two spoons presented in four different orientations. Results suggested that children with MI were less successful than their TD peers in both motor aspects (e.g., grasp and transport of food and utensils) and cognitive aspects (correct grasp across spoon orientations) of self‐feeding. Novel findings highlight: (a) interesting differences in visual attention between children with TD or MI; (b) the role of hand‐preference in the correct grasping of the spoon(s) and effective self‐feeding; (c) the positive relation between motor and cognitive aspects of self‐feeding; and (d) that greater variability of self‐feeding behavior relates to improved performance of cognitive aspects of the task. These results identify challenging components of self‐feeding for children with MI that should be targeted by early interventions and assistive technologies aimed at increasing self‐feeding independence.

Social interaction in the emergence of toddler’s mealtime spoon use

“…The activities of daily life revolve around stable clusters of skills that have been selected within a given populated environment (Reed, 1996). Self‐feeding—the ability independently to feed oneself with a utensil—is among the important daily skills in early development (Babik, Movva, Cunha, & Lobo, 2019; Connolly & Dalgleish, 1989; Gesell & Ilg, 1937). How do children learn, for example, to use a spoon?…”

Play with objects in children with arthrogryposis: Effects of intervention with the Playskin Lift™ exoskeletal garment

“…As AMC typically affects the limbs in a symmetrical manner (Oishi et al, ; Wallach et al, ), many children with AMC initially have difficulty lifting both arms against gravity and bending them at the elbow (Babik et al, ). However, at an early age, these children may develop a strong hand preference (Babik, Movva, Cunha, & Lobo, under review), likely because it is adaptive to concentrate on learning to control the movement of only one arm, rather than attempting to manage both arms. This might result in a decrease or delay in the development of bimanual object play (Babik & Michel, ) in children with AMC (Gibson, ; Jouen & Molina, ; Kimmerle et al, ; Lobo & Galloway, , ; Rochat, ).…”