Related Experiment Videos
Social contingency detection and infant development
1Department of Psychology, Emory University, Atlanta, Georgia 30322, USA. psypr@emory.edu
Insights
Infants develop social contingency detection within the first six months, distinguishing self from others. This ability fosters intersubjectivity, or shared experience, evolving significantly by 18 months.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Infant Social Cognition
- Early Social Development
Background:
- Social contingency detection is crucial for infant development.
- Early interactions shape an infant's understanding of social cues.
- Intersubjectivity, or shared experience, emerges from these early detections.
Purpose of the Study:
- To explore the developmental origins and determinants of social contingency detection.
- To propose a framework for understanding how infants develop a sense of self and social connection.
- To map the evolving social stances of infants from birth to 18 months.
Main Methods:
- Review of recent research on infant social development.
- Theoretical proposal based on existing empirical evidence.
- Analysis of the changing meaning of contingency detection and intersubjectivity.
Main Results:
- Social contingency detection originates from the infant's early ability to differentiate self from others (first 6 months).
- Contingency detection from the second month onwards contributes to a sense of intersubjectivity.
- The significance of contingency detection and its role in intersubjectivity undergo radical changes between birth and 18 months.
Conclusions:
- Social contingency detection is linked to the developing sense of self, reciprocity, and participation in infancy.
- A developmental map of infant social stances can be proposed.
- Understanding these origins is key to comprehending early social-emotional development.
Abstract:
The developmental origins and determinants of social contingency detection are discussed. Based on recent research, the author proposes that the origins of social contingency detection correspond to the early propensity developing in the first 6 months of life to differentiate between what pertains to the self (i.e., one's own body) and what pertains to others. Furthermore, from the second month of life, what infants appear to gain from contingency detection while interacting with others is a sense of shared experience or intersubjectivity. Research suggests that although the development of intersubjectivity is a central feature of infant behavior and development, the meaning of contingency detection, hence the source of intersubjectivity, changes radically between birth and 18 months of age. In general, it is proposed that the origins and determinants of social contingency detection must be construed in relation to (1) the developing sense of self in infancy, (2) the infant's developing sense of reciprocity with others, and (3) the infant's developing sense of participation with others. The author concludes by proposing a relevant map of changing social stances adopted by infants in the course of early development.