Informing early intervention through an occupational science description of infant-toddler interactions with home space.

OBJECTIVE: The study provides a substantive description of infant and toddler play with everyday objects and independent negotiation of home space. METHOD: A grounded theory approach was used to study 18 typically developing children longitudinally from ages 1 to 18 months. Data from 133 home visits included videotaped self-directed play sessions with usual objects, maternal interviews, and observation records. RESULTS: Infant Space Theory is a substantive theory of infant-toddler interactions with the spaces and objects of the home. This contextualized view of the infant-toddler describes progressions in gaze and visual play, in mapping and ranging home space, in stationary object play, and in the little-described development of mobile object play. CONCLUSION: Therapists providing early intervention services within the home environment may benefit from the theory in their creation and modeling of naturalistic interventions with infants and families.