Caregiver infant interactions

• attachment is a two-way emotional bond between two individuals in which each individual sees the other as essential for their own emotional security(The relationship is reciprocal shared). Can be characterised by; ⮚ Desire to be close (proximity) ⮚ Frequent interaction/Clinginess ⮚ Separation distress
• Primary carers show this sensitive responsiveness. (Recognising and responding appropriately to infant’s need.)
• RECIPROCITY → Babies have periodic ‘alert phases’ and signal they are ready for interaction, which mothers respond to around two-thirds of the time (Feldman and Eidleman, 2007) . Reciprocity explains how the mother and baby respond to each other’s signals. Babies have ‘alert phrases’ in which they signal (making eye contact)to show that they are ready for interaction. Research has shown that, although mothers typically pick up infant signals around two thirds of the time, this can be lower when mothers are under stress (Finegold et al. 2016)
• Research to support: Reciprocity Research Support Brazelton et al. (1975) describe this interaction as a ‘dance’ because when a couple dance together they each respond to one another’s movements and rhythm. Likewise, reciprocity is where the interaction between both individuals flows back and forth.
• There are two key features of attachment: INTERACTIONAL SYNCHRONY → Interactional synchrony takes place when infants mirror the actions or emotions of another person, for example, their facial expressions. This mirroring can also be referred to as imitation or simply copying the adult’s behaviour. In this caregiver–infant interaction the child will move their body or carry out the same act as their caregiver simultaneously and the two are said to be synchronized (in ‘sync’).
• Importance for attachment It is believed that interactional synchrony is important for the development of caregiver infant interaction. Isabella et al (1989) observed 30 mothers and infants together ❑assessed the degree of synchrony. ❑assessed the quality of mother-infant attachment. They found that high levels of synchrony were associated with better quality infant-mother attachment. This shows that interactional synchrony is important and is linked to strong, securely attached relationships
• Who conducted the research on interactional synchrony in infants in 1977?


  Andrew Meltzoff and Keith Moore
• What was the aim of Meltzoff and Moore's research?


  To investigate interactional synchrony in infants as young as 2 weeks old
• What method did Meltzoff and Moore use in their research?


  Controlled observation
• How old were the infants that Meltzoff and Moore studied?


  12-27 days old
• What did the researchers do to prevent the infants from responding during the observation?


  A dummy was placed in the child's mouth
• What was the main finding of Meltzoff and Moore's research?


  There was a close association between infant behavior and that of the adult experimenter
• What conclusion did Meltzoff and Moore draw from their research?


  Infants as young as two to three weeks old imitated specific facial and hand gestures
• What does the term "interactional synchrony" refer to in the context of this research?


  It refers to the coordinated interaction between infants and adults through gestures and expressions
• What implication does the finding that interactional synchrony is innate have for understanding infant development?


  It suggests that the ability to imitate and engage in social interactions is a natural part of infant development
• Evaluation point 1 Ruth Feldman (2012) points out that ‘’ideas like synchrony and reciprocity simply give names to patterns of observable caregiver and baby behaviour but not particularly useful in understanding child development‘’.
• What is one strength of research on caregiver-infant interactions?


  Caregiver-infant interactions are usually filmed in a laboratory.
• Why is controlling other activities important in filmed observations of infants?


  It prevents distractions that might affect the baby's behavior.
• What is the benefit of recording observations on film?


  Observations can be analyzed later, reducing the chance of missing key behaviors.
• How does having multiple observers contribute to the research's reliability?


  It helps establish the inter-rater reliability of observations.
• Why is it beneficial that babies do not know they are being observed?


  It means their behaviors are less likely to change due to the observation.
• What can be concluded about the data collected from filmed observations of infants?


  The data should have reliability and validity.
• What is one limitation of research into caregiver-infant interaction?


  It is hard to interpret a baby's behaviour.
• Why is it difficult to interpret a baby's behaviour during caregiver-infant interactions?


  Young babies lack co-ordination and their bodies are almost immobile.
• What types of movements are typically observed in babies?


  Small hand movements or subtle changes in expression.
• Why is it challenging to determine if a baby is smiling or just passing wind?

  Because the subtlety of their expressions makes it hard to interpret their feelings.
• What is a difficulty in understanding a baby's perspective during interactions?


  We cannot know whether a movement is random or triggered by the caregiver.
• What does the uncertainty in interpreting a baby's movements imply about caregiver-infant interactions?


  It means we cannot be certain that the behaviours have a special meaning.
• What is a limitation of the explanation of caregiver-infant interactions mentioned in the study material?


  Lack of generalisability
• What did Le Vine et al (1994) report about Kenyan mothers and their interactions with infants?


  Kenyan mothers have little physical interactions or physical contact with their infants
• Despite limited physical interactions, what type of attachment do Kenyan infants reportedly have?


  A high proportion of secure attachments
• Why might the research on caregiver-infant interactions be considered ethnocentric?


  It ignores how attachments may be formed within other cultures
• How does the lack of consideration for different cultures affect the validity of the research?


  It reduces the validity of the research
• What are the implications of the findings from Le Vine et al (1994) regarding caregiver-infant interactions across cultures?


  • Caregiver-infant interactions vary significantly across cultures
  • Secure attachments can form without physical contact
  • Research must consider cultural differences to improve generalisability
• What is a limitation of simply observing behavior in developmental psychology?


  It does not tell us its developmental importance.
• What do the terms synchrony and reciprocity refer to in caregiver and baby behaviors?


  They give names to patterns of observable behaviors.
• Why might synchrony and reciprocity not be particularly useful in understanding child development?


  They do not explain the purpose of these behaviors.
• What does observational research alone fail to confirm about reciprocity and synchrony?


  That they are important for a child's development.
• What evidence suggests that early interactions are important for child development?

  Isabella et al (1989) found that interactional synchrony predicted good quality attachment.
• What did Zampella et al (2020) find regarding interactional synchrony?


  It is associated with social and communication development in children.