Caregiver Infant Interactions

• What is attachment

  An emotional bond between two people in which seeks closeness. These people feel more secure in the presence of each other
• What are caregiver infant interactions

  Interactions between young babies and their caregivers
• Who leads the caregiver infant interactions

  They are baby led, with the caregiver responding to the behaviours
• What is reciprocity 


  (The word reciprocity) means two way, or something mutual)

  The infant and caregiver are both equal and active contributors who respond to each other

  • Reciprocity involves mutual responsiveness
  • Both infant and mother respond to each others signals and each elicits a response from the other
• What is an example of reciprocity

  Smiling is an example of reciprocity - when an infant smiles it triggers a smile in the caregiver and so on.
• AO3 (Reciprocity): Real World Value

  Understanding reciprocity is important as it influences a Childs physical, social and cognitive development

  • It becomes the basis for the development of basic trust and mistrust and forms how the child will relate to the world, learn and form relationships through life.

  JAFFE et al said that from birth, babies move in a rhythm when interacting with an adult, almost as if they were emulating a conversation
• What is interactional synchrony 


  When two people interact and tend to mirror what the other is doing in terms of their facial and body movements

  • They are 'in sync'
• Example of interactional synchrony 


  If a caregiver sticks out their tounge and the baby quickly does the same they are showing interactional synchrony
• What means interactional synchrony is more likely to develop


  Interactional Synchrony is most likely to develop if the caregiver attends fully to the baby's state

  • Provides playful stimulation when the baby is alert/attentive
  • Avoids pushing things when the baby needs a rest

  RESPONSIVE TO THE BABY'S NEEDS AND SIGNALS
• Reciprocity: Brazleton et al

  'RECIPROCITY IS A TWO WAY PROCESS WHERE BABIES TAKE AN ACTIVE INVOLVEMENT JUST AS MUCH AS THE CAREGIVER'

  Displayed infants can copy displayed distinctive facial expressions

  • he described it as a dance
• Isabella et al (1989) SUPPORTING TO MELTZOFF AND MOORE Caregiver Infant Interactions and Attachment

  Observed 30 mothers/infants together and assessed the degree of synchrony

  -> High levels of synchrony were associated with better quality mother/infant relationships

  
  

  = MORE SECURE ATTACHMENT
• Meltzoff and Moore (1977): Interactional Synchrony

  PROCEDURE ( 2-3 week old babies)

  
  

  SYSTEMATIC STUDY - methodological and organised approach

  • an adult model displayed one of 3 facial expressions and hand gestures
  • a dummy was placed in the infants mouth during the intitial display to prevent a response - following the display the dummy was removed and the child's expression was filmed

  FINDINGS

  Interactional synchrony began as young as 2 weeks old, when infants could mirror the gestures and facial expressions of an adult
• AO3: STRENGTH of Meltzoff and Moore's interactional synchrony study

  The study was filmed.

  • this means the observations can be analysed later and there is no ambiguity as the researchers won't miss any reactions.

  A benefit of using such young infants is that they are unaware they are being filmed - this means their behaviour will not change subject to investigator bias

  = HIGH INTERNAL VALIDITY
• Tronick (1972: Still Face Paradigm) PROCEDURE

  This showed how a parents reactions can affect the emotional development of a baby

  PROCEDURE

  • infant is sat facing their caregiver, the caregiver interacts with the baby, responding to their cues, noises and facial expressions
  • caregiver then turns away and has a 'still face' where they do not interact with the infant for 2 minutes
• Tronick (1972): Still Face Paradigm: FINDINGS

  FINDINGS

  • during the first phase, infants are engaged and respond to the caregivers cues - they show reciprocity

  Once the 'still face' phase occurs, infants show changes in their behaviour

  They show confusion, then distress, they aim to get back attention, then they crumple into a ball because their CNS gets so overwhelmed they loose postural control

  The child soon quickly returns to normal and regulate once play resumes
• What do the findings of Tronick's still face paradigm suggest

  Infants try to achieve a connection with their caregivers

  • they can activley engage and shape social interaction with their caregivers

  EV: Real World Implications

  infants were once thought to be unable to understand emotions, however the still face experiment shows they have a clear reaction to a lack or emotional connection.

  • This teaches parents the importance of responsiveness and allows children to grow up with secure, healthy attachments
• AO3: Interactional Synchrony/Reciprocity: Overemphasis of actions

  P: Many studies have show similar interactions between mothers and infants

  E: However these interactions can be as small as a hand movement and miniscule changes in facial expressions

  E: This means we can't be certain the behaviours seen in mother infant interactions are meaningful

  L: This suggests that further research into these interactions may provide useful knowledge about the purpose
• KEY DIFFERENCE BETWEEN RECIPROCITY AND INTERACTIONAL SYNCHRONY

  Reciprocity: taking turns in a back and fourth interaction

  • like a chat

  Interactional Synchrony: mirroring behaviours at the same time (in sync)

  • like a synchronised dance
• What is the importance of reciprocity 


  It helps a baby understand their actions can affect others, which is key for developing communication and relationship skills
• WHat is the importance of interactional synchrony 


  It helps build a strong emotional connection between the infant and caregiver