Early deprivation impairs the development of balance and bilateral coordination

Area of Science:

• Child Psychology
• Developmental Neuroscience
• Motor Skills Development

Background:

• Internationally adopted children, particularly those from post-institutionalized (PI) settings, may experience developmental challenges.
• Understanding the specific impacts of institutional rearing versus other adoption-related factors is crucial for targeted interventions.

Purpose of the Study:

• To compare balance and bilateral coordination skills in post-institutionalized (PI) children, internationally adopted children from foster care (FC), and non-adopted controls.
• To investigate the differential effects of institutional rearing and broader adoption factors on motor skill development.

Main Methods:

• A comparative study design involving three age-matched groups: PI children, FC children, and control children.
• Assessment of key motor skills including balance and bilateral coordination in all participant groups.

Main Results:

• Both PI and FC children demonstrated lower balance scores compared to control children.
• PI children exhibited significantly lower bilateral coordination scores than both FC and control children.
• Region of birth did not influence the relationship between institutional duration and bilateral coordination.

Conclusions:

• Institutional rearing appears to negatively impact the development of bilateral coordination skills.
• Factors associated with international adoption, beyond institutionalization, may affect balance development.
• Further research is needed to elucidate the specific mechanisms underlying these motor skill differences.