Caregiver-infant interactions Flashcards
Reciprocity
Mother-infant interaction in which both the infant and mother respond to each others signals and elicit a response from the other
Suggested that, from birth babies will move in a rhythm when interacting with an adult almost as if they are taking turns, like in conversation
Researchers suggest that these reciprocal interactions were the foundation of communication and also set up the basis for an attachment between infant and caregiver
Interactional synchrony
Temporal co-ordination of micro-level social behaviour
Takes place when caregiver and infant’s actions and emotions mirror each other
Important as research suggests that higher levels of mother-infant synchrony leads to a better quality of attachments
Meltzoff and Moore - procedure and findings
Adult model displayed one of three facial expressions or hand movements in front of a 2-3 week old infant
Dummy placed in infants mouth to prevent them responding and the same time as the expression
Once the dummy was removed, the infants response was filmes
Found there was a link between the infant’s behaviour and the model’s
Evaluation of interactional synchrony
Strength of controlled observation - well-controlled procedures as they filmed the interactions from multiple angles. Researchers therefore can capture fine details making the research more valid as they can carefully analyse the video
No demand characteristics - babies won’t be aware they are being observed so won’t change their behaviour
Observer bias - observers looking for behaviours which infants produce regularly (sticking their tongue out or yawning) so its difficult to know they are responding to the adults expressions or just carrying out regular behaviours. To combat this, independent observers were used who didn’t know what expression the adult was making, to judge to videos
Socially sensitive research - research into interactional synchrony could be socially sensitive as it suggests its important for the formation of a quality attachment. Could be problematic for mothers who wish to return to work as they could think by doing so ‘too early’ they will be harming their child’s development
