The Tots on Bots interdisciplinary research team started its second year with a social and informative gathering with all students and faculty from four different departments involved in the study.
The purpose of this 3-year, NSF funded study, is to examine the effect of robotic-assisted locomotion on the development of executive function in pre-crawling infants. Faculty members involved in this study are Dr. Carole Dennis (Occupational Therapy), Dr. Nancy Rader, Dr. Judith Pena-Shaff and Dr. Laura Muscalu (Psychology), Dr. Hélène Larin (Physical Therapy), and Dr. Sharon Stanfield (Computer Science). This project provides work and research training opportunities for 45 undergraduate and graduate students per year from Computer Science, Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, and Psychology.
This study aims to advance our understanding of the relationship between early locomotor experience and cognitive development, particularly executive functioning, and provides Ithaca College students with hands-on experience as they participate in all aspects of the research. Long term, this study should provide an additional rationale for reconsidering the role of providing early mobility experience to young children with locomotion disabilities.
So far, 36 babies have participated in our study and preliminary analyses are promising. We continue to recruit infants shortly before they turn 5 months old. If you or someone you know have recently had a baby and are interested in participating in this study, please contact Dr. Hélène Larin at 607-274-3116 or hlarin@ithaca.edu
