Related Experiment Video
Updated: May 13, 2026

Examining Recall Memory in Infancy and Early Childhood Using the Elicited Imitation Paradigm
Published on: April 28, 2016
Being mimicked increases prosocial behavior in 18-month-old infants
Malinda Carpenter1, Johanna Uebel, Michael Tomasello
1Department of Developmental and Comparative Psychology, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology, Leipzig, Germany. carpenter@eva.mpg.de
Mimicry in 18-month-old infants significantly boosts prosocial behavior. Infants who were mimicked were more likely to help adults, demonstrating early social benefits of imitation.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Social Psychology
- Infant Behavior
Background:
- Previous infant imitation research focused on instrumental actions.
- Adult mimicry research indicates increased prosocial behavior.
- The social impact of infant mimicry remains under-explored.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate if being mimicked by an experimenter increases prosocial behavior in 18-month-old infants.
- To determine if infant mimicry promotes a general prosocial orientation.
Main Methods:
- Eighteen-month-old infants (N=48) participated in a controlled experiment.
- Infants were either mimicked or not by an experimenter.
- Prosocial behavior was assessed by observing infant helpfulness towards the experimenter or a different adult.
Main Results:
- Infants who had been mimicked were significantly more likely to help adults.
- This effect was observed regardless of whether the adult needing help was the experimenter or a different person.
- Mimicry positively influenced infant prosocial behavior.
Conclusions:
- Mimicry has positive social consequences even in infancy.
- Infant mimicry promotes a general prosocial orientation towards others.
- This study highlights the early development of social reciprocity through imitation.
More Related Videos
05:04A Common Marmoset Model of Mother-Infant Intervention for Breastfeeding Disorders in the Presence of Paternal Inhibition and Maternal Neglect
Published on: September 22, 2023
11:14A Novel Experimental and Analytical Approach to the Multimodal Neural Decoding of Intent During Social Interaction in Freely-behaving Human Infants
Published on: October 4, 2015
Related Concept Videos
Nonconscious Mimicry
Observational Learning
Empathy
Social Foundations of Self II: The Generalized Other
Socioemotional Development during Infancy
Primary Temperament Types
Stella Chess...
Imprinting