| dc.description.abstract | Background – Object exploration is a way how children explore the world around them. However, little is known about factors that influence the development of this kind of exploration. Because research on object exploration is highly outdated, new research is needed. This paper focuses on the influence of gender, socioeconomic status (SES) and birth order on object exploration by children aged 16 to 30 months. Methods - Participants, children from 16 untill 30 months with a Dutch background, were recruted by students of the University of Utrecht. Surveys and observations with larger and smaller toys were conducted at the participant’s home. The observations are coded according to a coding scheme. Results - Results suggest that females score higher on object exploration with the smaller toys than boys. This effect was not found for object exploration with larger toys. Children with a higher SES tend to have a slightly better score on the total score of object exploration than children with a lower SES, but this is marginally significant. High SES does significantly predict object exploration with the larger toys, but not with the smaller toys. Birth order does not influence object exploration significantly. Conclusion – There is a relationship between object exploration and gender and socioeconomic status, but this is not the case with birth order. Further longitudinal research is needed to find other factors that can influence object exploration and to create complete understanding of the development of object exploration. These insights are needed to prevent and treat children with possible developmental delays. | |
