The time scale long enough for developmental change to take place. For prehension, the requisite time would be weeks or months while for language it would be at least months and probably years. This time scale is contrasted with that for real time, the seconds or fractions of seconds during which immediate behavior is expressed. A major concern in dynamical systems approaches to development is how these two time scales relate in the emergence of new ontogenetic abilities.
See Developmental emergence, Developmental hypothesis, Developmental research, Dynamical systems approaches, Dynamic systems theory (development and evolution) Maturation versus learning debate, Microgenetic method, Phylogenetic (or geological) time, Time-lag design