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Updated: May 8, 2026
Sit-to-stand-and-walk from 120% Knee Height: A Novel Approach to Assess Dynamic Postural Control Independent of Lead-limb
Published on: August 30, 2016
Newly standing infants increase postural stability when performing a supra-postural task
Laura J Claxton1, Jeffrey M Haddad, Katelyn Ponto
1Department of Health and Kinesiology, Purdue University, West Lafayette, Indiana, United States of America. ljclaxton@purdue.edu
Insights
Infants improve their standing balance and stability when performing a goal-directed task, such as holding a toy. This demonstrates their ability to adapt posture for concurrent activities even with limited experience.
Area of Science:
- Developmental psychology
- Motor control
- Infant biomechanics
Background:
- Achieving independent stance is a challenging motor milestone for infants.
- Newly standing infants display significant body sway and limited standing duration.
- Postural instability in infants typically improves slowly over time.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether infants can enhance postural stability during a goal-directed task.
- To determine if engaging in a task influences infant balance control.
- To examine the effects of a concurrent task on the development of bipedal stance.
Main Methods:
- Infants' balance was assessed in two conditions: standing alone and standing while holding a visually engaging toy.
- Key metrics included standing duration, body sway, and postural dynamics.
- Data were collected to compare stability between the two conditions.
Main Results:
- Infants demonstrated increased standing duration when holding a toy.
- A significant reduction in body sway was observed in the toy-holding condition.
- Postural dynamics became more mature when infants performed the concurrent task.
Conclusions:
- Infants can actively stabilize their posture to support a concurrent goal-directed task.
- Engaging in a task enhances postural control in newly standing infants.
- This adaptability suggests that motor development can be influenced by task demands.
Abstract:
Independent stance is one of the most difficult motor milestones to achieve. Newly standing infants exhibit exaggerated body movements and can only stand for a brief amount of time. Given the difficult nature of bipedal stance, these unstable characteristics are slow to improve. However, we demonstrate that infants can increase their stability when engaged in a standing goal-directed task. Infants' balance was measured while standing and while standing and holding a visually attractive toy. When holding the toy, infants stood for a longer period of time, exhibited less body sway, and more mature postural dynamics. These results demonstrate that even with limited standing experience, infants can stabilize posture to facilitate performance of a concurrent task.
