Volume 1 – 5-Month-Old Infants

Number 8 – Motor, Social and Cognitive Development

A child's level of motor and social development during infancy is associated with a number of indicators of adjustment later on in life. Although the sequence and the timing of the stages appear to be universal, various factors account for differences in development among infants. The first part of this section examines the motor and social development of infants in Québec. Information provided by mothers allows us to present an overview of the motor and social development of infants who were about 5 months old when data were first collected for the Longitudinal Study of Child Development in Québec (ELDEQ 1998-2002). Furthermore, we examine if certain characteristics of the infant's sociodemographic and family context are associated with the fact that he/she has already manifested certain abilities.

The Longitudinal Study of Child Development in Québec (ELDEQ 1998-2002) also provides an exceptional opportunity to assess, on an annual basis, early cognitive development in a very large representative sample of five-month-old Québec children. The main objective of this second section is to evaluate the mental capacity of infants at the age of five months. Of specific interest is the developmental pace of mental capacity: 1) Does this pace differ among infants, and 2) Are there links between certain aspects of socioeconomic status and the development pace of mental capacity?