Physiological arousal predicts gaze following in infants
Year: 2019
Type: article
Abstract: According to the natural pedagogy theory, infant gaze following is based on an understanding of the communicative intent of specific ostensive cues. However, it has remained unclear how eye contact affects this understanding and why it induces gaze following behaviour. In this study, we examined infant arousal in different gaze following contexts and whether arousal levels during eye contact predict gaze following. Twenty-five infants, ages 9-10 months participated in this study. They watched a video of an actress gazing towards one of two objects and then either looking directly into the camera to make eye contact or not showing any communicative intent. We found that eye contact led to an elevation in the infants' heart rates (HRs) and that HR during eye contact was predictive of later gaze following. Furthermore, increases in HR predicted gaze following whether it was accompanied by communicative cues or not. These findings suggest that infant gaze following behaviour is associated with both communicative cues and physiological arousal.
Authors: Mitsuhiko Ishikawa, Shoji Itakura
Institutions: Japan Society for the Promotion of Science, Kyoto University
Language: English
Subfield: Developmental and Educational Psychology
Field: Psychology
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
Awards: Elucidating the Neural Basis and Development of Social Behavior through the Analysis of Inter-subjectivity, Study of developmental origin and process of fairness in infancy, 未就学児における視線情報処理と集団適応の関連：実験室とフィールドからの総合的検討, 『機能リズム障害としての自閉症』仮説検証, Acquisition of the independence of mind: Evolution and development of the mind liberated from the current external environments
OpenAlex ID: W2912385441