Caregiver infant interactions

Caregiver infant interactions

1. reciprocity

   • taking turns e.g. like having a conversation
     • Brazelton- important percusor to later communications
       • allows caregiver to anticipate infants behaviour and respond appropriately

2. interactional synchrony

   • meltzoff and moore - 2 to 3 wks old imitated hand and facial gestures
     • found an association between infant behaviour and adult model
       • found the same with infants 3 days old
         • behavioural response innate

3. real or pseudo imitation?

   • meltzoff and moore - imitation is intentional
     • piaget- infant is doing 'response training'
       • repeating behaviour that is rewarded
         • pseudo imitation
     • evidence: murray and trevarthen
       • two month old infants interacted with mother video monitor,
         • tape of mother- not responding to infant. infants tried to gain attention, and then turned away
           • infant is actively eliciting a response rather than displaying 'rewarded' responses
             • behaviours are innate

4. EVALUATION

   • problems with testing infant behaviour
     • infants mouths always in motion- difficult to distinguish between general activity and specific imitated behaviours
   • failure to replicate
     • koepke et al failed to replicate meltzoff and moore's study
       • marian et replicated murray and trevarthen's study
         • infants couldn't distinguish from live and tape
           • infants not actually responding to mother
   • is the behaviour intentional?
     • abravanel and DeYong observed infant behaviour when interacting with two objects
       • made little response to the objects
       • infants dont imitate anything - specific social response to humans

5. FURTHER EVALUATION

   • individual differences
     • interactional synchrony - variation
       • isabella et al - more strongly attached infant-caregivers showed greater interactional synchrony
   • the value of research
     • imitative behaviour forms basis for social development
       • meltzoff- like me hypothesis
         • theory of mind - fundamental for conducting social relationships