Social cognition, joint attention, and communicative competence from 9 to 15 months of age

At around 1 year of age, human infants display a number of new behaviors that seem to indicate a newly emerging understanding of other persons as intentional beings whose attention to outside objects may be shared, followed into, and directed in various ways. These behaviors have mostly been studied separately. In the current study, we investigated the most important of these behaviors together as they emerged in a single group of 24 infants between 9 and 15 months of age. At each of seven monthly visits, we measured joint attentional engagement, gaze and point following, imitation of two different kinds of actions on objects, imperative and declarative gestures, and comprehension and production of language. We also measured several nonsocial-cognitive skills as a point of comparison. We report two studies. The focus of the first study was the initial emergence of infants' social-cognitive skills and how these skills are related to one another developmentally. We found a reliable pattern of emergence: Infants progressed from sharing to following to directing others' attention and behavior. The nonsocial skills did not emerge predictably in this developmental sequence. Furthermore, correlational analyses showed that the ages of emergence of all pairs of the social-cognitive skills or their components were inter-related. The focus of the second study was the social interaction of infants and their mothers, especially with regard to their skills of joint attentional engagement (including mothers' use of language to follow into or direct infants' attention) and how these skills related to infants' early communicative competence. Our measures of communicative competence included not only language production, as in previous studies, but also language comprehension and gesture production. It was found that two measures--the amount of time infants spent in joint engagement with their mothers and the degree to which mothers used language that followed into their infant's focus of attention--predicted infants' earliest skills of gestural and linguistic communication. Results of the two studies are discussed in terms of their implications for theories of social-cognitive development, for theories of language development, and for theories of the process by means of which human children become fully participating members of the cultural activities and processes into which they are born.     

Infants' social-constructive interactions with mothers and fathers.

Four parent–infant joint-action variables were derived by combining parents' vocal or object-stimulation behaviors with infants' vocal or object-directed behaviors observed in the home setting. Measures of simultaneous vocalization, joint-object play, parent-vocalize/infant-object play, and infant-vocalize/parent-object stimulation were constructed to represent social-construction experiences in which shared actions between infants and parents are thought to contribute to infants' cognitive development. The analyses (based on 66 infants and their parents) focused on the normative changes and stability of individual differences of these measures from 6 to 12 months and their relations with 30-month cognitive-development status. The durations of all measures increased with age. All joint-action measures showed consistency across time, and the 12-month mother–infant (but not father–infant) joint-action measures were strongly related with 30-month McCarthy scores. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Individual differences in visual self-recognition as a function of mother–infant attachment relationship.

Investigated whether individual differences in visual self-recognition are related to infants' early social relations by comparing 37 infants' attachment relationships at 12 mo of age to their visual self-recognition at both 18 and 24 mo of age. Infants and their mothers were observed in a modified strange-situation procedure (M. D. Ainsworth et al, 1978) when the infants were 12 mo old. Infants were seen again at 18 and 24 mo of age in the standard mirror-recognition procedure. Consistent with previous studies, self-recognition behavior increased from 18 to 24 mo of age. Individual differences in early attachment relations were related to later self-recognition. In particular, insecurely attached infants showed a trend toward earlier self-recognition than did securely attached infants. Results are discussed in terms of the relation between attachment and individuation. (43 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mothers' personality and its interaction with child temperament as predictors of parenting behavior.

In this longitudinal, multimethod investigation, the authors examined mothers' personality and its interaction with infants' negative emotionality as predictors of parenting behavior. When infants were 8–10 months old (N?=?112), mothers completed personality self-reports, and the authors observed infants' negative emotionality in both standard procedures and naturalistic daily contexts. When infants were 13–15 months old (N?=?108), the authors observed two aspects of parenting, power assertion and maternal responsiveness, in mother–child interactive contexts. Maternal personality alone and also in interaction with child emotionality predicted future parenting behaviors. The longitudinal links established between personality and parenting behaviors indicate the predictive utility of personality. Findings also highlight the bidirectionality of the early parent–child relationship. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Cocaine Exposure Is Associated With Subtle Compromises of Infants' and Mothers' Social-Emotional Behavior and Dyadic Features of Their Interaction in the Face-to-Face Still-Face Paradigm.

Prenatal cocaine and opiate exposure are thought to subtly compromise social and emotional development. The authors observed a large sample of 236 cocaine-exposed and 459 nonexposed infants (49 were opiate exposed and 646 nonexposed) with their mothers in the face-to-face still-face paradigm. Infant and maternal behaviors were microanalytically coded. No opiate-exposure effects were detected. However, mothers of cocaine-exposed infants showed more negative engagement than other mothers. The cocaine-exposed dyads also showed higher overall levels of mismatched engagement states than other dyads, including more negative engagement when the infants were in states of neutral engagement. Infants exposed to heavier levels of cocaine showed more passive-withdrawn negative engagement and engaged in more negative affective matching with their mothers than other infants. Although effect sizes were small, cocaine exposure, especially heavy cocaine exposure, was associated with subtly negative interchanges, which may have a cumulative impact on infants' later development and their relationships with their mothers. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Behavior-state matching and synchrony in mother-infant interactions of nondepressed versus depressed dyads.

Behavior-state matching and synchrony in interactions were assessed in 48 depressed and nondepressed mother–infant dyads when the infants were 3 months old. Attentive/affective behavior states were coded for the infants and mothers on a negative to positive scale. The depressed mothers and their infants matched negative behavior states more often and positive behavior states less often than did the nondepressed dyads. The total percentage of time spent in matching behavior states was less for the depressed than for the nondepressed dyads. Cross-spectral analyses of the mothers' and the infants' behavior-state time series suggested only a trend for greater coherence or synchrony in the interactions of the nondepressed dyads. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of the ability to locomote on infants' social and exploratory behaviors: An experimental study.

In Exp I, 20 normal 6.5–10 mo old infants who were unable to locomote independently were observed for 10 min in an infant "walker" and for 10 min out of the walker. Exp II compared effects of walker-assisted locomotion with effects of independent locomotion in 16 7–20 mo olds who were able to creep or crawl. Age parameters were closely similar to those of the 1st sample. Results indicate that the 2 modes of locomotion, walker-assisted or independent, afforded similar experiences within a standard environment, but experiences quite different from those of the nonlocomoting infant. Some behaviors actually emerged as a function of the ability to locomote; others changed in frequency or were extended to new features of the environment. In addition, all classes of behaviors measured were known from other studies to affect adults' behavior toward infants. Therefore, changes in these behaviors should lead to changes in infants' social experiences. The systematic reorganization of experiences, both social and nonsocial, as a result of locomotion has implications for social, perceptual, cognitive, and language development. (30 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Sibling relationship quality from birth to adolescence: the enduring contributions of friends.

The purpose of the present study was to examine continuity in sibling relationships across childhood and to evaluate the degree to which children's experiences with their friends and mothers prior to their sibling's birth predict the quality of the relationship they establish with their siblings in adolescence. Twenty-eight firstborn children, who were 48 months old at the time of their sibling's birth, were observed interacting with their siblings and friends at multiple time points. The level of positive social behaviors demonstrated in their early relationships with friends continued to predict sibling relationship quality in adolescence. Firstborn children who had more positive interactions with friends prior to their sibling's birth demonstrated more prosocial interactions with both their siblings and friends in adolescence and exhibited fewer externalizing behaviors. Longitudinal associations support the hypothesis that the social competencies that young children demonstrate in their early relationships with friends may have enduring significance for their social development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

"Relation between mastery behavior in infancy and competence in early childhood": Correction to Messer et al.

Reports an error in "Relation between mastery behavior in infancy and competence in early childhood" by David J. Messer, Mary E. McCarthy, Susan McQuiston, Robert H. MacTurk, Leon J. Yarrow and Peter M. Vietze (Developmental Psychology, 1986[May], Vol 22[3], 366-372). In the article, an incorrect copyright note has been given. The copyright note has been corrected and is included in the erratum. (The following abstract of the original article appeared in record 1986-24138-001.) 53 infants were observed at 6 and 12 mo of age during 2 24-min play sessions. The Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID) were given at 6 and 12 mo and the McCarthy Scales of Children's Abilities (MSCA) at 30 mo of age. Results reveal that measures of competence in infancy (successful task completion during play and the BSID scores) were not strongly correlated with the 30-mo MSCA scores. In contrast, infant mastery behavior during play strongly predicted MSCA scores: The time spent investigating toys at 6 mo and persistence in solving tasks at 12 mo of age were behaviors significantly positively correlated with the MSCA scales. It is suggested that infant behaviors that predict later competence do not remain static but change with age and that infants' mastery behavior is a more effective predictor of later development than their competence with either toys or developmental tests. (23 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Mother-child play and emerging social behaviors among infants from maltreating families.

Mother-child play of 12-month-old infants (N = 130) from maltreating (N = 78) and nonmaltreating (N = 52) families was analyzed as a context that integrates infants' developing social and cognitive skills. Play was coded from semistructured and unstructured play paradigms. No group differences were found in infants' play maturity. Infants from abusing families demonstrated more imitative play than infants from nonmaltreating families, and engaged in less independent play than infants from both neglecting and nonmaltreating families, suggesting a delay in emerging social behaviors. Mothers from abusing and nonmaltreating families differed in attention directing behaviors. Maternal behaviors predicted child play style variables, but did not mediate the effects of maltreatment. Findings discuss the influence of an early maltreating environment upon the development of the emergent self. Implications for early intervention are underscored. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Communication within infant social games.

This study explored the growing capability of children, 9 to 18 months of age, to request a partner's participation in social games. Nineteen infants played a set of prescribed games for 30 min in a laboratory setting with an adult partner when they were 9, 12, 15, and 18 months of age. The children's nonverbal behavior and vocalizations during 15-s intervals in which the adult partner discontinued her involvement in the game (interruption periods) were compared with their behavior during game-playing periods. A reliable increase in communicative behavior was displayed during the interruption periods. Behavior during the interruption periods indicated that infants as young as 9 months understood elements of the content and structure of the games, were capable of engaging in object–person interaction, and were able to regulate the games by requesting that their partners continue to participate. The display of this knowledge and skill became more frequent and reliable with increasing age. The results are discussed with reference to the effect of adult scaffolding on infants' use of communication. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Infants' responses to their mothers' expressions of joy and sadness.

On separate visits to the laboratory, 36 nine-month-old infants (18 boys and 18 girls) watched their mothers express joy or sadness, facially and vocally, during a 2-min emotion-induction period. After the induction period, mothers continued to express joy or sadness while their infants played with four sets of toys. Infant emotion expressions were analyzed using the Max (Izard, 1979a) and Affex (Izard, Dougherty, & Hembree, 1983) coding systems, and infant play behavior was coded with a system developed by Belsky and Most (1981). The amount of time that the infants looked at their mothers was also measured. Findings were generally consistent with differential emotions theory (Izard, 1979b). The infants expressed more joy and looked longer at their mothers during the joy condition and they showed more sadness, anger, and gaze aversion during the sadness condition. The infants engaged in more play behavior in the joy condition than in the sadness condition. Regression analyses revealed several significant relations between infants' gaze behavior, emotion expressions, and play behavior. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

A learning analysis of the development of peer-oriented behavior in nine-month-old infants.

Tested some predictions of social learning theory concerning the development of peer-oriented social behaviors of infants. Naturalistic observations were made of 32 pairs of 9-mo-old infants who were brought together in their own homes for 11 (experimental) or 2 (control) play sessions. Over 10 play sessions the experimental infants increased their peer-oriented behavior in complexity and in degree of social engagement while the controls did not. The increase in peer-oriented behavior generalized to a new play-session mate in the 11th session. Since the increase in peer-oriented behavior was not related to the amount of contingent responding elicited from the play-session mate but was related to the total amount of behavior received from the play-session mate, it is concluded that the increase occurred as a result of the infant having been exposed to the stimulating behavior of another infant, but was not an associative learning effect. The role of peer behavior as an eliciting stimulus is discussed. (28 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Effects of stress and cohort on mother- and father-infant interaction.

20 18-mo-olds were observed interacting with their mothers and fathers in a structured laboratory setting. In an initial free-play session, infants directed more affiliative behaviors to their fathers than to their mothers. When observed alone with each parent there was more parent-child interaction than when both parents were present, though the same relative preferences emerged; however, the entry of a stranger caused infants to seek proximity to their mothers preferentially. The wariness occasioned by the stranger caused a shift in the infants' behavior from affiliation to attachment. (27 ref) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Enhancing self-care parenting

The interaction between parents and infants is contingent upon the parents' understanding of their infant's behavior and what the infant is trying to communicate through specific behaviors. The Synactive Model of Newborn Behavioral Organization and Development provides a theoretical base to identify and classify infant behaviors. Parents need to have an understanding of sleep/wake states, infant behaviors, and infant cues in order to have a positive parenting experience. The advanced practice nurse has the opportunity to educate parents regarding their infants' behaviors and appropriate interventions, which can lead to increased parental confidence, competence in interacting with their infants, and positive self-care parenting.     

Social competence and person-object differentiation: An analysis of the still-face effect.

The communicative abilities of infants, revealed by the still-face (SF) procedure, were examined in 2 studies comparing behavior toward people and "interactive" objects. In Exp 1, 32 3- and 6-mo-olds were presented with an object and a person (mother or female stranger). The SF effect was produced only by mothers and strangers. Positive affect clearly established person–object differentiation; infants smiled at people but rarely smiled at the object. In Exp 2, 12 3-mo-olds were presented with 4 stimuli: a female stranger and 3 objects with features varying in similarity to an abstract, smiling face. Again, infants reserved their smiles for the person. Positive affect appears to be a primary index of young infants' social–perceptual competence and person–object differentiation. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

étude comparative de nourrissons prématurés et nés à terme et des modes de stimulations qu'ils expérimentent au cours des six premiers mois.

Compared preterm and fullterm infants' temperament and development and to evaluate the physical and social stimulations they experience at 2, 4 and 6 months (correcting for prematurity). Fifty-six mother–infant dyads, including 28 premature and 28 fullterm infants, participated in the study. The groups did not differ on temperament and developmental measures, neither on physical environment (density, toys, accessories). However, significant differences were found regarding social stimulation. Mothers of preterm infants had less optimal sensibility-contingency scores and used more distal stimulation at 2 months than mothers of fullterm infants. During the first 6 months, premature infants spent more time in activities involving the immediate family, whereas fullterm infants went more frequently on outings. At home, fullterm infants interacted more with people from their social network. These stimulations could eventually have an impact on infant development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)     

Responsive parenting: Establishing early foundations for social, communication, and independent problem-solving skills.

Mothers whose infants varied in early biological characteristics (born at term, n = 120; born at very low birth weight [VLBW], n = 144) were randomized to a target group (n = 133) or developmental feedback comparison group (n = 131) to determine whether learning responsive behaviors would facilitate infant development. The target condition included videotaped examples, problem-solving activities, and mothers' critique of their own behaviors through video procedures across 10 home visits. All target versus comparison mothers showed greater increases across multiple responsiveness behaviors observed in 4 assessments conducted across 6-13 months of age; changes in emotionally supportive behaviors were strongest for target mothers of infants born at VLBW. Increased maternal responsiveness facilitated greater growth in target infants' social, emotional, communication, and cognitive competence, supporting a causal role for responsiveness on infant development. Although benefits were generally comparable across risk groups, aspects of social and emotional skills showed greater change for those born at VLBW. Evidence for responsiveness as a multidimensional construct was provided as well as the importance of different aspects of responsiveness mediating the effect of the intervention on different infant skill domains. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2010 APA, all rights reserved)