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Do Facial Masks Impact Infants' Joint Attention? A Within-Participant Laboratory Study
Stephanie Wermelinger1, Lea Moersdorf1, Charlotte Baldenweg1
1Department of Psychology and Jacobs Center for Productive Youth Development, Developmental Psychology: Infancy and Childhood, University of Zurich, Zurich, Switzerland.
Insights
Facial masks did not significantly impact joint attention in 12- to 15-month-old infants interacting with caregivers. Infants showed similar attention behaviors whether caregivers wore masks or not.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Infant Social Cognition
- COVID-19 Pandemic Research
Background:
- The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated widespread mask usage, altering social interactions.
- Limited research exists on the effects of caregiver facial masks on early infant social-communication development.
- Joint attention, crucial for language and social development, involves shared focus on objects or events.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether caregiver facial masks influence the initiation and response to joint attention in infants.
- To examine the impact of mask-wearing on infant-caregiver interactions during the pandemic.
Main Methods:
- A preregistered, within-participants experimental study was conducted with 12- to 15-month-old Swiss infants.
- Infants' joint attention episodes were measured during interactions with a caregiver in two conditions: caregiver wearing a facial mask versus no mask.
- Two structured tasks and one free-play task were employed to assess joint attention behaviors.
Main Results:
- No statistically significant differences were found in infants' joint attention behaviors between the mask and no-mask conditions.
- Infants demonstrated comparable levels of joint attention regardless of whether the caregiver's face was partially covered by a mask.
Conclusions:
- Infants' ability to engage in joint attention was not negatively affected by caregiver mask-wearing during the pandemic.
- Potential reasons include prior exposure to masked individuals or sufficient non-facial cues (eyes, body language) for attention guidance.
Abstract:
During the COVID-19 pandemic, children were repeatedly confronted with people wearing facial masks. Little is known, however, about how this affected young children's interactions with their caregivers. This preregistered experimental within-participants study explored whether facial masks influence young children's initiation and response to joint attention. Using two structured tasks and one free-play task, we measured joint attention episodes in interactions of 12- to 15-month-old Swiss infants with one of their caregivers during the pandemic. In one experimental condition, the caregivers wore a facial mask; in the other, they did not. The results show no significant differences in infants' joint attention between the two conditions. Infants may have interacted with their caregivers wearing facial masks enough previously not to be influenced by masks; alternatively, even with a partially covered face, a person provides enough information via eyes and other body parts that help infants to guide their attention.
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