PSY 140 life span module 3- Portage Learning

PSY 140 life span module 3- Portage Learning The Newborn The smell of a newborn infant. The feel of holding a baby in your arms. Kissing tiny fingers and toes. These are sensations that parents r elish their entire lives. Many developmental experts note that babies seem to evoke very nurturing responses in most healthy adults, due to their appearance and dependency. A. Infant Reflexes Despite being entirely dependent on caregivers, however, infants do come equipped with reflexes that either help to protect them or enable them to get an early start on motor skills. Each of these reflexes eventually go away when no longer needed. A lingering reflex may indicate brain damage. A list of key infant reflexes is below. See if you know or can guess what the function of each is: Rooting Moro Reflex Grasping Reflex (also known as Palmar grasp) Stepping Reflex Answers: Rooting involves the baby turning her head when her cheek or mouth is touched. It presumably aids feeding as the infant finds something to suck. Moro reflex is a startle response in which the infant arches his back and throws out his arms and legs. The infant behaves much as we would if we felt we were falling and tried to grab something to protect ourselves. Thus, some researchers believe that this reflex has survival value. Most adults know that placing a finger in an infant’s palm will trigger the grasping reflex. This grasp can be extremely strong! This reflex appears to be a stepping stone to additional motor development, as when an infant becomes able to grasp things voluntarily. The stepping reflex involves the infant making stepping motions when held above a surface. Again, it may serve as a building block for future motor development. Please watch the following video that shows and describes infant reflexes: