Conditions for Piagetian Stage IV search errors in a task using transparent occluders

In a Piagetian Stage IV search task in which the object was in plain view under transparent covers, Butterworth (1977) obtained errors from nearly half the infants but noted few errors when the object was uncovered. This study investigates the possibility that errors arise in the former case because novel transparent covers present a particular distraction. Butterworth's results with transparent covers were replicated under his conditions of administration, but virtually no errors were obtained when infants were familiarized with the covers prior to testing. From this and other results it is suggested that errors in search for a visible object only occur when the infant's attention is drawn by other features of the array.     

Relevance of physical environment influences for toddler temperament

The present study investigated the relation of the physical environment to toddler and parent temperament. Measurement of the physical environment offers a unique way of disentangling environmental influences on temperament from child influences on the environment. Subjects were 82 12-month-old toddlers. The physical environment was assessed during six separate home observations, using codes from the Purdue Home Stimulation Inventory. Toddler temperament was measured by the Toddler Temperament Scale, and maternal temperament was assessed with the revised Dimensions of Temperament Scale. Results indicated that measures of crowding and availability of objects and visual stimuli were most consistently related to specific dimensions of toddler temperament. Relations between physical environment and maternal temperament were inconsistent. Partialling out maternal temperament did not substantially change observed relations between the physical environment and toddler temperament. Implications of these findings for our understanding of environmental contributions to the expression of temperament are discussed.     

Infant temperament and performance on the Bayley Scales of Infant Development at 4, 8, and 12 months of age

Infants were assessed with the Rothbart Infant Behavior Questionnaire (an objective measure of infant temperament based on maternal reports) and the complete Bayley Scales of Infant Development (BSID) at 4, 8, and 12 months of age. Activity level was related to BSID performance at each age with babies who obtained higher scores rated as more active. Activity level was also related to the infants' behavior during the test administration at 8 and 12 months. A negative relation was found between smiling and laughter and the mental development index at 8 and 12 months. These data suggest that aspects of infant temperament as assessed by maternal report share a small amount of variance with BSID performance and the amount of shared variance increases with age.     

CULTURAL MODELS OF INFANT EMOTIONS AND NEEDS AMONG THE GAMO PEOPLE OF SOUTHERN ETHIOPIA

How mothers perceive their infants’ emotions and their subsequent responses are influenced by cultural values and beliefs. Mothers who live in particularly harsh environments may have perceptions about their infants’ emotions that reflect not only cultural values but also constraints of the environment. In this qualitative study, 29 Gamo mothers living in rural Ethiopia were interviewed about perceptions of their infants’ emotions, how they felt about these emotions, and what they believed their infants needed in response. Through constant comparative analysis and thematic coding, several patterns emerged in mothers’ perceptions about their infants’ emotions and what constituted appropriate responses. Mothers said that their infants’ negative emotions were possibly related to illness and that appropriate responses were focused mostly on breastfeeding, complementary food, and needing to be held. Mothers also discussed their work demands and how they conflicted with their desire to respond to their infants; however, many mothers said that they relied on their older children to help. Mothers’ responses were centered on a parenting strategy aimed at promoting infant health and survival, which is consistent with research on parents living in rural environments who subsist by farming and have relatively high risk for infant mortality.     

Training student teachers to reposition infants frequently

We evaluated the effects of an intervention designed to increase the variety of positions experienced by infants in a child-care setting. Six student teachers were trained, using a multicomponent intervention, to reposition infants according to a chart. The intervention was successful in increasing the mean percentage of correct position changes made by all 6 student teachers, and performance gains by 3 student teachers persisted when supervisor feedback was briefly removed.     

Infant Directed Speech in Natural Interaction—Norwegian Vowel Quantity and Quality

An interactive face-to-face setting is used to study natural infant directed speech (IDS) compared to adult directed speech (ADS). With distinctive vowel quantity and vowel quality, Norwegian IDS was used in a natural quasi-experimental design. Six Norwegian mothers were recorded over a period of 6 months alone with their infants and in an adult conversation. Vowel duration and spectral attributes of the vowels /a:/, /i:/ and /u:/, and their short counterparts /a/ /i/ and /u/ were analysed. Repeated measures analyses show that effects of vowel quantity did not differ between ADS and IDS, and for back vowel qualities, the vowel space was shifted upwards in IDS compared to ADS suggesting that fronted articulations in natural IDS may visually enhance speech to infants.     

Dynamics of the dyad: How mothers and infants co-construct interaction spaces during object play

Studies of dyadic interaction often examine infants’ social exchanges with their caregivers in settings that constrain their physical properties (e.g., infant posture, fixed seating location for infants and adults). Methodological decisions about the physical arrangements of interaction, however, may limit our ability to understand how posture and position shape them. Here we focused on these embodied properties of dyadic interaction in the context of object play. We followed 30 mother–infant dyads across the first year of life (at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months) and observed them during 5 min of play with a standard set of toys. Using an interval-based coding system, we measured developmental change in infant posture, how mothers and infants positioned themselves relative to one another, and how they populated interaction spaces with objects. Results showed that mother–infant dyads co-constructed interaction spaces and that the contributions of each partner changed across development. Dyads progressively adopted a broader spatial co-orientation during play (e.g., positioned at right angles) across the first year. Moreover, advances in infants’ postural skills, particularly increases in the use of independent sitting in real time, uniquely predicted change in dyadic co-orientation and infants’ actions with objects, independent of age. Taken together, we show that the embodied properties of dyadic object play help determine how interactions are physically organized and unfold, both in real time and across the first year of life.     

Preterm infant body composition,working memory,and temperament

Altered body composition in preterm infants is associated with risks to cognitive development, but the effect specific to prefrontal cortex (PFC) development is unknown. We were interested in the impact of fat mass (FM) and fat free mass (FFM) gains out to 4 months corrected gestational age (CGA) on PFC development, as indexed by working memory and temperament. This is a prospective observational pilot study recruiting 100 preterm (<33 weeks gestation), appropriate for gestational age, and very low birth weight infants, of which 49 infants met inclusion criteria. Body composition was measured using air displacement plethysmography at hospital discharge and 4 months CGA. Questionnaire based temperament assessments were completed at 12 and 24 months CGA and a working memory assessment was completed at 24 months CGA. Associations between developmental tests and body composition obtained at term and 4 months were analyzed. Increased FM at discharge was associated with increased fear and decreased soothability at 12 months. Increased FM at 4 months was associated with increased activity level, increased distress from limitations at 12 months and decreased attentional shifting, decreased frustration, and decreased inhibitory control at 24 months. Increased FFM at 4 months was associated with increased activity level at 12 months and increased impulsivity and decreased low intensity pleasure at 24 months. In this exploratory pilot study, increased FM out to 4 months and increased FFM after discharge are associated with negative markers of infant temperament. Infant temperament may be sensitive to body composition status at least to 4 months CGA.