Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 10, 2026
Frame-by-Frame Video Analysis of Idiosyncratic Reach-to-Grasp Movements in Humans
Published on: January 15, 2018
Dynamic reaching in infants during binocular and monocular viewing
Therese L Ekberg1, Kerstin Rosander, Claes von Hofsten
1Department of Psychology, Uppsala University, Box 1225, 75142 Uppsala, Sweden. therese.ekberg@psyk.uu.se
Insights
Infants
Area of Science:
- Developmental psychology
- Motor control
- Infant perception
Background:
- Infant reaching is crucial for sensorimotor development.
- Understanding visual influences on reaching informs developmental theories.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate how binocular versus monocular vision affects reaching in infants.
- To determine the impact of age on reaching under different visual conditions.
Main Methods:
- Examined reaching in 6-, 8-, and 10-month-olds.
- Utilized a dynamic reaching task with objects at various positions.
- Compared reaching performance during binocular and monocular viewing.
Main Results:
- Hand selection was independent of viewing condition or age.
- Monocular viewing increased time to object contact.
- Younger infants (6-month-olds) exhibited more errors with monocular vision.
- Rotation direction influenced contact time when the right eye was covered.
Conclusions:
- Visual input significantly impacts the timing and accuracy of infant reaching.
- Developmental changes in visual-motor integration are evident by 10 months.
- Monocular deprivation reveals age-dependent compensatory strategies in reaching.
Abstract:
This study examined reaching in 6-, 8-, and 10-month-olds during binocular and monocular viewing in a dynamic reaching situation. Infants were rotated toward a flat vertical board and reached for objects at one of seven positions along a horizontal line at shoulder height. Hand selection, time to contact the object, and reaching accuracy were examined in both viewing conditions. Hand selection was strongly dependent on object location, not on infants' age or whether one eye was covered. Monocular viewing and age did, however, affect time to object contact and contact errors: Infants showed longer contact times when one eye was covered, and 6-month-olds made more contact errors in the monocular condition. For right-hand selection, contact times were longer when the covered right eye was leading during the chair rotation. For left-hand selection, there were no differences in contact time due to whether the covered eye was leading during rotation.
