Inter-manual transfer of object texture and shape in human neonates

Intermanual and Intermodal Transfer in Human Newborns: Neonatal Behavioral Evidence and Neurocognitive Approach

“…Using a classic tactile habituation-dishabituation procedure the authors predicted that after successive presentations of the same object, each preterm infant would show a decrease in holding time regardless of the hand tested or object shape. Second, the hypothesis of discrimination in intermanual transfer would be confirmed by differential treatment of novel and familiar objects in the opposite hand, as demonstrated previously in full-term newborns (Sann & Streri, 2008a). Thus, discrimination would be considered to have occurred when mean holding time for novel and familiar objects in the opposite hand differed significantly.…”

“…These particular tactile experiences could enhance the development of the intermanual transfer of information in preterm infants, even among younger infants who are at least 9 days old. In this case, according to the hypothesis proposed by Sann and Streri (2008a), preterm infants could have a more elaborate representation of shape than full-term newborns, leading to a preference for the novel shape in the opposite hand. However, these interpretations remain entirely speculative and post-hoc and require further investigation.…”

“…Sann and Streri (2008a) investigated the inter-manual transfer of shape in twenty-four 2-day-old full-term newborns. After tactual habituation to a shape (prism or cylinder) in one hand, full-term newborns held the familiar shape longer in the opposite hand, and not the novel shape as usually expected in such procedure (Soroka, Corter, & Abramovitch, 1979).…”

“…But in the same study, infants also exhibited inter-manual transfer of texture (smooth or granular), with a preference for the novel texture in the opposite hand. According to Sann and Streri (2008a), these discrepancies in performance between object properties indicate that the property of shape requires a more abstract and elaborate representation relative to texture. However, given the design of the study, it is not possible to draw definite conclusions about the type of shape information that was transferred: the entire shape of the object, edge information (round vs. angled), or other contrasts or differences.…”

Non-Drug Habilitation of Children With Perinatal Affections of the Nervous System

“…В последние годы опубликованы зарубежные иссле-дования, показавшие возможность использования для тактильной стимуляции недоношенных младенцев ману-ального тренинга с захватыванием предметов различ-ной формы [30][31][32]. Установлено, что к распознаванию и запоминанию формы предмета (цилиндр или призма) способны недоношенные младенцы с гестационным воз-растом > 28 нед (в т. ч. перенесшие перинатальную гипок-сию) уже в первые дни жизни [33][34][35].…”