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Early Social Experience Affects the Development of Eye Gaze Processing
Atsushi Senju1, Angélina Vernetti1, Natasa Ganea1
1Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London WC1E 7HX, UK.
Current Biology : CB
|January 12, 2016
Summary
Infants with blind parents show less attention to eye gaze, adjusting their social learning based on early communication experiences. This highlights adaptive brain plasticity in response to the social environment.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Neuroscience
- Communication Studies
Background:
- Eye gaze is fundamental for human non-verbal communication, social learning, and infant-adult interaction from birth.
- Limited research exists on how varied eye contact experiences impact early social and communicative development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the effects of differing eye contact and gaze communication experiences on early development.
- To assess social and communicative development in sighted infants of blind parents (SIBPs).
Main Methods:
- Longitudinal assessment of 14 SIBPs at 6-10 and 12-16 months using eye tracking for face scanning and gaze following.
- Naturalistic observations during interactions with blind and sighted adults.
- Evaluation of emergent autistic-like behaviors and standardized cognitive, motor, and linguistic development tests.
Main Results:
- SIBPs demonstrated typical overall social skills development.
- SIBPs showed reduced attention to adult eye movements and gaze direction, an effect that intensified with age.
- Comparison with infants of sighted parents revealed these differences.
Conclusions:
- Infants adapt their use of adult eye gaze based on early communication experiences.
- Human brain development exhibits experience-dependent plasticity, adapting to the specific social environment.
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