Caregiver-infant interactions

    Cards (21)

    • What is the significance of caregiver-infant interactions in social development?
      They are associated with the successful development of attachments between babies and their caregivers.
    • What is reciprocity in caregiver-infant interactions?
      • It occurs when each person responds to the other.
      • For example, a caregiver responds to a baby's smile.
      • This interaction elicits a response from the baby.
    • What is the term used to describe the back-and-forth nature of interactions between caregivers and infants?
      Turn-taking.
    • What are alert phases in infants?
      They are periods when babies signal readiness for interaction by making eye contact.
    • How do external factors influence a mother's responsiveness to her baby's alert phases?
      Factors such as stress can affect how mothers respond to their baby's alertness.
    • What are the strengths and limitations of filmed observations in studying caregiver-infant interactions?
      Strengths:
      • Controlled environment allows for detailed analysis.
      • Behaviors can be analyzed later by different observers.

      Limitations:
      • Difficult to interpret subtle changes in behavior.
      • Observer bias may affect the results.
    • At what age does interactional synchrony begin to develop in infants?
      As young as two weeks old.
    • What is interactional synchrony?
      It is the temporal coordination of micro-level social behavior between caregiver and baby.
    • What did Meltzoff and Moore (1977) observe about infants and interactional synchrony?

      Infants were more likely to mirror the facial expressions and gestures of adults than chance would predict.
    • How is interactional synchrony related to attachment quality?
      High levels of synchrony are associated with better quality mother-baby attachment.
    • How can the concept of reciprocity be applied in real-life caregiver-infant interactions?
      • Caregivers should respond to infants' cues.
      • Engaging in turn-taking can enhance bonding.
      • Positive interactions can foster emotional security.
    • What did Russell Isabella et al. (1989) find regarding synchrony and attachment?
      They found that high levels of synchrony were associated with better quality mother-baby attachment.
    • What is the role of both caregiver and baby in interactions?
      Both take an active role and initiate interactions.
    • How does the traditional view of childhood differ from current understanding regarding infant roles?
      Traditionally, infants were seen as passive, but now they are recognized as active participants in interactions.
    • Avoidant attachment is when infants show little to no distress upon separation from the caregiver and avoid contact upon their return.
    • Anxious-ambivalent attachment involves infants being extremely distressed upon separation from the caregiver and displaying mixed emotions upon their return.
    • Secure attachment is characterized by infants feeling distressed when separated from their caregiver but being able to compose themselves upon their return.
    • The infant's ability to imitate is an important aspect of social development.
    • The mother's behavior is more likely to be imitated by the child if it is contingent on the infant's actions.
    • Infants are sensitive to their caregivers' emotional expressions, particularly facial expressions.
    • Infants are able to recognize their own name by the end of the first year, indicating self-awareness.
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