Background/Purpose Affordance theory and limited research with infants suggests that the environment provides opportunities and resources for action (Adolph, 2008; Gibson, 1979). The present study addressed the question of whether motor affordances in infants' homes predicts motor competence.
Method We used the Affordances in the Home Environment for Motor Development – Infant Scale (AHEMD-IS) to test this question in 79 homes of infants ages 3- to 18 months. The AHEMD-IS is a validated and reliable instrument designed to assess the quantity and quality of affordances in the home environment that are conducive to motor development for infants (Caçola et al., 2010). Infants were assessed for motor behavior using the Alberta Infant Motor Scale (AIMS) (Piper & Darrah, 1994); a standardized, norm-referenced measure of infant motor development from birth to the attainment of independent walking. Assessments were performed in the home or child's day care by a certified physical therapist. Six months after the first motor assessment, 28 infants were re-assessed with the AIMS.
Analysis/Results ANOVA results for AHEMD-IS total scores reflected a wide range of values, which could be interpreted as low, average, and high affordance availability. Regression analyses indicated that total home score significantly predicted motor development in the first and second assessment, ps < .05, explaining 41% of the variability of the data on the second assessment.
Conclusions The association between motor development and affordances in the home environment found in this study provides significant information about the complex nature of early motor development.
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