Caregiver-Infant Interactions Evaluation

Caregiver-Infant Interactions Evaluation

1. Supporting Research

   • Isabella (1989)
   • Observed 30 mothers & infants together and assessed the degree of synchrony
   • Researchers assessed the quality of mother-infant attachment
   • Found higher levels of synchrony associated with better quality mother-infant attachment
   • Has real life application - infants should be placed next to their mothers in hospital and should continue to remain in close contact for at least the first 3 months

2. Methodology

   • Other studies have failed to replicate the findings of Meltzoff & Moore
   • Marian et al (1996)
   • Found that infants could not distinguish live from videotaped interactions with their mothers
   • Suggests that infants are not actually responding to the adult
   • Reduces the overall reliability of Meltzoff & Moore's research

3. Individual Differences

   • An important feature of interactional synchrony is that there is some variation between infants
   • Isabella (1989)
     • Found that the more strongly attached infant-caregiver pairs showed greater interactional synchrony
   • Suggests that there is a developmental purpose to interactional synchrony
   • Heiman
     • Showed infants who demonstrate lots of imitation from birth have better quality relationships at 3 months