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Published on: July 17, 2021
Computing relational strength: an implausible component of early naïve sociology
1School of Psychology, University of Plymouth, Plymouth, UK denis.tatone@gmail.com.
The Behavioral and Brain Sciences
|May 27, 2026
Summary
Infants may not compute the strength of social bonds. Instead, their understanding of relationships likely relies on categorizing connections within specific schemas, like caregiving.
Area of Science:
- Cognitive Development
- Developmental Psychology
- Social Cognition
Background:
- Existing theories propose infants use two computations for social relationships: categorization and strength computation.
- The concept of relational strength in infancy is a key area of developmental research.
Purpose of the Study:
- To critically evaluate the concept of "relational strength" in infant social cognition.
- To propose an alternative explanation for infant social relationship representation.
Main Methods:
- Conceptual analysis of existing theories on infant social relationship representation.
- Review of empirical evidence for relational strength in early development.
Main Results:
- The concept of "relational strength" is argued to be ill-defined.
- Empirical evidence supporting relational strength in infants is deemed unconvincing.
- Putative operations of relational strength are better explained by categorical inferences.
Conclusions:
- Infant representation of social relationships is primarily based on categorical inferences within narrow schemas (e.g., caregiving).
- The notion of computing relational strength may not be necessary to explain infant social cognition.
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