Relationships among integration of Primitive reflexes, Motor competence
and Crawling in children
Abstract
The inhibition or integration of primary reflexes is fundamental in the
child’s development. If this does not occur in an adequate manner,
reflexes may remain active and children may develop poor motor
competence. Therefore, the aims of the study were to analyze the
relationships among the persistence of reflexes, motor competence and
crawling pattern in children and to assess gender differences. The
Primitive Reflex Assessment protocol, the Movement Assessment Battery
for Children and an ad-hoc questionnaire for parents were used. The
sample consisted of 233 children from childhood education, and two
extreme groups were made (low motor competence and typical development
or high motor competence). The results indicated that participants with
lower reflex inhibition showed lower motor competence, most of them had
not crawled, and boys showed a higher presence of non-inhibited
reflexes. It can be concluded that both early detection and motor
interventions that favour reflex inhibition are necessary.