Search

Social cues and instrumental learning are two aspects potentially fostering early gaze following. We systematically investigated the influence of social features (schematic eyes vs. reverse-contrast eyes) and gaze-contingent reinforcement (elicited vs. not elicited) on 4-month-olds' learning to attend to gaze-cued objects. In 4 experiments, we tested infants' (N = 74) gaze following of a turning block with schematic or reverse-contrast eyes. In Experiments 1 and 2, infants could elicit an attractive animation in a training phase via interactive eye tracking by following the turning of the block. Experiments 3 and 4 were yoked controls without contingent reinforcement. Infants did not spontaneously follow the motion of the block. Four-month-olds always followed the block after training when it featured schematic eyes. When the block featured reverse-contrast eyes, the training phase only affected infants' looking behavior without reinforcement. While speaking to a certain degree of plasticity, findings stress the importance of eyes for guiding infants' attention.

Today, adolescents can easily make contact with strangers online. The present study examines the relation of online communication with strangers (OCS) and mild delinquency among junior high school students and explores which risk factors are associated with both types of behavior, taking gender differences into account. A total of 1873 Japanese adolescents (aged 12–15) with mobile phones completed online questionnaires assessing internet usage (duration, variability), parental behavior (violence, monitoring), and adolescent characteristics (depression, self-control) as potential predictors of OCS and mild delinquency. Sequential model testing revealed that the duration of internet usage was associated with both dependent variables, whereas its variability was associated with OCS alone. Self-control and parental violence predicted both outcome variables in girls, but only mild delinquency in boys. Depression was related with both behaviors in boys. Parental monitoring was negatively associated with OCS among girls and with mild delinquency among boys. Overall, OCS appeared to have a similar function for girls as mild delinquency did for boys. Implications for future studies and preventive programs will be discussed.

Purpose. Maternal depression during pregnancy and postpartum is a frequent mental disorder exerting detrimental effects on affected mothers and their infants. A dysfunctional partner relationship during this critical period is recognized as a risk factor for maternal depressiveness. However, the causal relation between partnership quality and perinatal maternal depression has been sparsely studied so far. The current study aims to longitudinally assess relationship quality from pregnancy to postpartum and to test a potential association with maternal perinatal symptoms of depression.Methods. Differing from previous studies, partnership quality and symptoms of depression have been assessed prospectively and longitudinally in a sample of 353 women from the second trimester of pregnancy until six months postpartum. Cross-lagged panel models were applied to investigate the causal relationship between partnership quality and perinatal maternal depressive symptoms.Results. Relationship quality decreased significantly during the transition to parenthood with the steepest decline in tenderness. We found a significant association of relationship quality and maternal symptoms of depression. However, cross-lagged panel models did not confirm the discovered association as causal.Conclusions. The results outline that the transition to parenthood is associated with major changes in the couple’s relationship. However, the cause-and-effect associations may be more complex as previously assumed. Our findings emphasize the importance of providing early prevention and intervention for peripartum women and their partners to improve relationship quality and to prevent adverse outcome for the family.

Human adults are better at recognizing different views of a given face as belonging to the same person when that person is familiar rather than unfamiliar. To clarify the developmental origin of this well-established phenomenon, one group of five-month-olds (N = 22) was presented with pictures of four different unfamiliar female faces at a fixed rate (6 Hz, 166 msec stimulus onset asynchrony), interrupted every 5th stimulus (1.2 Hz) by either their mother's face (mother oddball condition) or, in different stimulation sequences, a stranger's face (stranger oddball condition). In another group of five-month-olds (N = 17), stimulation sequences were reversed such that their mothers' or a given stranger's face were repeated at 6 Hz and interrupted every 5 stimuli by pictures of different female faces (mother standard, stranger standard conditions, respectively). Twelve variable images of each identity served as stimulus material. Besides clear frequency-tagged EEG responses at the 6 Hz stimulation rate over the medial occipital region in all conditions, significant activity at 1.2 Hz and harmonics (2.4 Hz, etc.) was observed in this region, reflecting selective responses to facial identity across changes of views. This effect was strongest when the mother's face was immediately repeated at every stimulation cycle (mother standard). Overall, these observations point to an early developmental advantage of identifying a familiar face presented from different views during immediate stimulus repetition.

Following the literature, children younger than 8 years rarely innovate a tool. Theories on innovation and comparative research on tool manufacturing suggest that children’s performance may depend on the task context. The current study explored whether preschool children’s poor performance in past research could be attributed to short time limits and the required manufacturing method. In four experiments, 5-year-olds needed to retrieve a toy from a tube by manufacturing a novel tool and using it successfully. The type of potentially functional materials varied among the experiments. Cumulative innovation rate was analyzed after 1 and 10 min. The 5-year-olds rarely innovated if merely “reshape” (modifying the material’s shape) was offered as a potentially successful manufacturing method even when they had up to 10 min to complete the task (21%; Experiment 1). The vast majority of 5-year-olds succeeded if multiple manufacturing strategies were functional, but only if children had up to 10 min to complete the task (93%; Experiment 2). The innovation rate remained high if “detach” (separating material from a substrate) was not available (76%; Experiment 3) and if “subtract” (removing something from a material) was the only functional manufacturing method (71%; Experiment 4). Our findings suggest that even preschool-aged children are “good innovators” if (a) they have enough time and (b) manufacturing methods other than reshape can be used to solve the problem. However, they seem to struggle if (a) they have only 1 min to complete the task and (b) solving the task requires them to reshape a material.

Objectives Excess sugar consumption, particularly in the form of sweetened beverages, has been identified as a pivotal contributor to the epidemic of obesity and associated metabolic disorders. However, the impact of sugar-sweetened beverages on food craving is still inconclusive. Therefore, the present study aimed to specifically investigate the effects of an intestinal glucose load on neural processing of food cues. Methods Using a single-blind fMRI design, 26 normal-weight women were scanned on two occasions, after receiving either a glucose or water infusion directly into the stomach using a nasogastric tube, without being aware of the type of infusion. Participants had to either view neutral and food images, or were asked to distract themselves from these images by solving an arithmetic task. Results In response to viewing high-caloric food cues, we observed increased activation in reward-related brain areas. During food distraction, fronto-parietal brain regions were recruited, which are commonly related to attentional deployment and hedonic valuation. Furthermore, activity in the dorsolateral prefrontal cortex showed increased functional connectivity with the insula and was correlated with subjective craving levels to food cues. Despite an increase of blood glucose levels in response to the glucose compared to the water infusion, neither subjective food craving nor neural regulation of food craving showed significant differences. Conclusions These findings support a decreased satiation effect of sweet beverages, as intestinal glucose ingestion and signalling showed no significant effect on cortical brain circuits associated with food craving. This trial was registered at clinicaltrials.gov as NCT03075371.

This study investigated influences of group membership on preschoolers’ (N = 174) over-imitation, focusing on artificially formed minimal groups. Children observed an ingroup or outgroup model demonstrating an inefficient strategy. We tested whether group membership influenced the elicitation of over-imitation (Phase 1). Subsequently, they observed an outgroup/ingroup model demonstrating an efficient strategy and we tested whether group membership influenced the persistence of over-imitation when a more efficient solution is available (Phase 2). Although we found a significant increase in over-imitation with an increasing emphasis of group membership during group formation, over-imitation rates were not affected by group membership of the model. It did not make a difference whether children observed either strategy by an ingroup or outgroup model. We conclude that minimal group membership itself did not affect children’s tendency to over-imitate. Nevertheless, we assume that children’s over-imitation was influenced by general aspects of the group formation process, such as the playful context which was created prior to the demonstrations.

Previous studies showed that the movements of another person's eyes and head guides infants' attention and promotes social learning by leading to enhanced encoding of cued objects. However, it is an open question whether social features like eyes are required or if the lateral movement of any arbitrary stimulus can elicit similar effects. The current experiments investigate the effects of the movement of a nonsocial cue and a perceptually similar social cue on object processing in 4-month-olds using event-related potentials (ERPs). Infants were presented with one of two central cues, either a box with a checkerboard pattern or a box with eye-like features on the front, which turned to one side. The cue thereby either turned toward a novel object or turned away from it. Afterwards, the object was presented again and ERPs in response to these previously cued or uncued objects were compared. When the nonsocial box served as the cue, no difference in neural processing of previously cued and uncued objects was found. In contrast, when the box with eyes served as the cue, we found an enhanced positive slow wave (PSW) for uncued as compared to cued objects. While the turning of the box with eyes promoted the encoding of cued objects, uncued objects needed enhanced activity for processing when presented for a second time. Results suggest that not every dynamic cue can influence infants' object processing but that the presence of a basic social characteristic like isolated schematic eyes is sufficient to enhance social learning processes in early infancy. This hints on a specific sensitivity of the infant brain to social information which helps infants to focus on relevant information in the environment during social learning.

Zusammenfassung. Im Umgang mit eigenen Impulsen sind Kinder zunächst auf ihre Bezugspersonen angewiesen, lernen aber schon bald, sich auch selbst zu regulieren. Im Artikel wird diskutiert, welche Faktoren dieses Entwicklungsgeschehen beeinflussen. Dabei ist es wichtig, das Verhalten von Eltern und Kindern parallel in den Blick zu nehmen. Wir stellen einen neuen Fragebogen zur Erfassung des IMpuls-MAnagements zwischen Bezugsperson und Kind vor, der für 1- bis 6-Jährige konzipiert wurde (IMMA 1 – 6). Hier macht die Bezugsperson Angaben über ihre Vorstellungen und Ziele zur kindlichen Selbstregulation (n = 16 Items), das selbstregulative Verhalten des Kindes (n = 42 Items) sowie das eigene Erziehungsverhalten (n = 55 Items) beim kindlichen Umgang mit Ziel-Frustration, Verboten und Erwartungen. Eine testtheoretische Überprüfung des Instrumentes an N = 270 Eltern-Kind Dyaden lieferte ermutigende Befunde: Sie dokumentiert gute Skalen- bzw. Item-Kennwerte. Implikationen für Forschung und Praxis werden diskutiert.

The present study uses a prospective longitudinal study design to investigate the development of maternal self-efficacy in the transition phase to parenthood, drawing on a large sample of socially and/or culturally disadvantaged families (N = 292). Parity, maternal education, migration, informal and formal social support are considered as potential predictors. Results indicate that previous birth experience, being born abroad, and higher levels of formal and informal social support during pregnancy jointly predict higher levels of maternal self-efficacy three months after birth. First-time mothers and mothers born in Germany (where the study was conducted) benefit more from formal support than mothers with previous experience and mothers born outside of Germany. Overall, maternal self-efficacy increases significantly. Implications for prenatal maternal care are discussed.El presente estudio usa un diseño de estudio longitudinal potencial para investigar el desarrollo de la auto efectividad materna en la fase de transición a ser madre. Usando una muestra grande de familias desfavorecidas social y/o culturalmente (N = 292). Se consideran como potenciales factores de predicción la paridad, la educación materna, la migración, y el apoyo social informal y formal. Los resultados indican que una previa experiencia de dar a luz, el haber nacido en el extranjero, así como altos niveles de apoyo social formal e informal durante el embarazo predicen en conjunto altos niveles de auto efectividad materna tres meses después del parto. Las madres primerizas y las madres nacidas en Alemania (donde se llevó a cabo el estudio) se beneficiaron más del apoyo formal que las madres con experiencia previa y las madres nacidas fuera de Alemania. En general, la auto efectividad materna aumentó significativamente. Se discuten las implicaciones para el cuidado materno prenatal.Cette étude utilise un plan d’étude prospectif longitudinal pour se pencher sur le développement de l'auto-efficacité maternelle dans la phase de transition à la parenté, en utilisant un grand échantillon de familles socialement et/ou culturellement défavorisées (n = 292). La parité, l’éducation maternelle, la migration, le soutien social informel et formel sont considérés comme des prédicteurs potentiels. Les résultats indiquent qu'une expérience de la naissance antérieure, le fait d’être née à l’étranger et des hauts niveaux de soutien social formel et informel durant la grossesse prédisent ensemble des niveaux élevés d'auto-efficacité maternelle après la naissance. Les mères étant mères pour la première fois et les mères nées en Allemagne (où l’étude a été faite) ont plus bénéficié d'un soutien formel que les mères ayant déjà donné naissance à un enfant et que les mères nées en dehors de l'Allemagne. Dans l'ensemble l'auto-efficacité maternelle a augmenté de manière importante. Les implications pour le soin maternel prénatal sont discutées.Entwicklung mütterlicher Selbstwirksamkeit von der Schwangerschaft bis drei Monate nach der Geburt In der vorliegenden Studie wurde ein prospektives Längsschnittdesign verwendet, um die Entwicklung mütterlicher Selbstwirksamkeit in der Übergangsphase zur Elternschaft anhand einer großen Stichprobe sozial und/oder kulturell benachteiligter Familien (N = 292) zu untersuchen. Parität, mütterliche Bildung, Migration, sowie informelle und formelle soziale Unterstützung wurden als potenzielle Prädiktoren betrachtet. Die Ergebnisse zeigen, dass vorherige Erfahrungen mit Geburt, im Ausland geboren zu sein und ein höheres Maß an formeller und informeller sozialer Unterstützung während der Schwangerschaft gemeinsam ein höheres Maß an mütterlicher Selbstwirksamkeit drei Monate nach der Geburt vorhersagten. Erstgebärende und in Deutschland (wo die Studie durchgeführt wurde) geborene Mütter profitierten stärker von formeller Unterstützung als Mütter, die schonmal geboren hatten oder selbst im Ausland geboren wurden. Insgesamt nahm die Selbstwirksamkeit von Müttern deutlich zu. Implikationen für die pränatale Betreuung von Müttern werden diskutiert.妊娠中から出産後3ヵ月までの母親の自己効力感の発達 本研究では、社会的・文化的に恵まれない家庭の大規模サンプル(N=292)を用いて、親への移行期における母親の自己効力感の発達について前向き縦断研究デザインを用いて調査した。妊娠経験、母親の教育、移住、非公式および公式の社会的支援が潜在的な予測因子として検討された。その結果、前に出産経験があること、外国で生まれたこと、そして妊娠中のより高いレベルの公式および非公式の社会的支援が、共同で出産後３ヵ月の母親のより高いレベルの自己効力感を予測することが示された。初産婦とドイツ(研究実施国)で生まれた母親は、出産経験のある母親やドイツ以外で生まれた母親よりも、公式の支援の恩恵を受けた。全体として、母親の自己効力感は優位に増加した。産前の母親ケアへの影響について論じられる。.本研究采用前瞻性纵向研究设计, 以社会或文化弱势家庭 (N = 292) 为样本, 研究了在向为人父母过渡阶段母亲自我效能的发展。平等、母系教育、移民、非正式和正式的社会支持被认为是潜在的预测因素。结果表明, 以往的生育经历、在国外出生以及更高水平的正式和非正式社会支持, 共同预测了在产后三个月更高水平的母亲自我效能。与有生育经历和在德国以外出生的母亲相比, 首次生育的母亲和在德国出生的母亲 (该研究是在德国进行的) 从正式支持中受益更多。总体而言, 母亲自我效能显著提高。研究还讨论了对产前母亲护理的影响。.تطور الكفاءة الذاتية للأم من الحمل إلى ثلاثة أشهر بعد الولادة تستخدم الدراسة الحالية تصميم دراسة طولية استطلاعية للتحقيق في تطور الكفاءة الذاتية للأم في المرحلة الانتقالية إلى الأمومة ، باستخدام عينة كبيرة من العائلات المحرومة اجتماعياً أو ثقافياً (N = 292) ويعتبر التكافؤ ، وتعليم الأم ، والهجرة ، والدعم الاجتماعي غير الرسمي والرسمي عوامل تنبؤية محتملة. تشير النتائج إلى أن تجربة الولادة السابقة ، والولادة في الخارج ، والمستويات الأعلى من الدعم الاجتماعي الرسمي وغير الرسمي أثناء الحمل تتنبأ بشكل مشترك بمستويات أعلى من الكفاءة الذاتية للأم بعد ثلاثة أشهر من الولادة. استفادت الأمهات للمرة الأولى والأمهات اللواتي ولدن في ألمانيا (حيث أجريت الدراسة) من الدعم الرسمي أكثر من الأمهات ذوات الخبرة السابقة والأمهات المولودات خارج ألمانيا. بشكل عام ، زادت الكفاءة الذاتية للأم بشكل ملحوظ. تناقش الدراسة تطبيقات النتائج على الرعاية الأمومية قبل الولادة.

The current four experiments investigated gaze following behavior in response to gaze and head turns in 4‐month‐olds and how reinforcement learning influences this behavior (N = 99). Using interactive eye tracking, infants’ gaze elicited an animation whenever infants followed a person’s head or gaze orientation (Experiment 1.1, 2.1 and 2.2) or looked at the opposite side (Experiment 1.2). Infants spontaneously followed the direction of a turning head with and without simultaneously shifted gaze direction (Cohen’s d: 0.93–1.05) but not the direction of isolated gaze shifts. We only found a weak effect of reinforcement on gaze following in one of the four experiments. Results will be discussed with regard to the impact of reinforcement on the maintenance of already existing gaze following behavior.

Previous research has shown that 6- to 9-month-old infants detect role reversals in dyadic interaction involving 2-argument relations. These studies extend this line of research to a 3-argument structure: An agent gives an object to a recipient. We conducted 4 experiments in a novelty-preference paradigm. Infants were habituated to videotaped sequences of a puppet giving a flower to another puppet. In the test phase, the puppets' spatial positions were switched, and infants alternately saw role-reversal and direction-reversal trials. Results indicate that 10.5- and 12-month-olds but not 9-month-olds selectively encoded the change of action role (agent-recipient) over a change in the spatiotemporal properties of the interaction and that action role encoding was specific to intentional relations in a 3-argument structure. Thus, infants at the end of their 1st year seem to be sensitive to movement cues that specify intentional relations between an agent and a recipient.

From preschool age, humans tend to imitate causally irrelevant actions—they over‐imitate. This study investigated whether children over‐imitate even when they know a more efficient task solution and whether they imitate irrelevant actions equally from a human compared to a robot model. Five‐to‐six‐year‐olds (N = 107) watched either a robot or human retrieve a reward from a puzzle box. First a model demonstrated an inefficient (Trial 1), then an efficient (Trial 2), then again the inefficient strategy (Trial 3). Subsequent to each demonstration, children copied whichever strategy had been demonstrated regardless of whether the model was a human or a robot. Results indicate that over‐imitation can be socially motivated, and that humanoid robots and humans are equally likely to elicit this behavior. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent studies suggest that even infants attend to others' beliefs in order to make sense of their behavior. To warrant the assumption of early belief understanding, corresponding competences need to be demonstrated in a variety of different belief-inducing situations. The present study provides corresponding evidence, using a completely nonverbal object-transfer task based on the general violation-of-expectation paradigm. A total of n = 36 infants (15-month-olds) participated in one of three conditions. Infants saw an actor who either observed an object's location change, did not observe it, or performed the location change manually without seeing it (i.e., variations in the actor's information access). Results are in accordance with the assumption that 15-month-old infants master different belief-inducing situations in a highly flexible way, accepting visual as well as manual information access as a proper basis for belief induction.

Behavioral research has shown that 12- but not 9-month-olds imitate an unusual and inefficient action (turning on a lamp with one's forehead) more when the model's hands are free. Rational-imitation accounts suggest that infants evaluate actions based on the rationality principle, that is, they expect people to choose efficient means to achieve a goal. Accordingly, infants' expectations should be violated when observing inefficient actions. However, this has yet to be clearly tested. Here, we conducted three electrophysiological experiments to assess infants' neural indices of violation of expectation (VOE) when observing hand- and head-touch actions. We presented infants with video sequences showing a model whose hands were either free (Experiments 1 and 3) or restrained (Experiment 2). Subsequent images depicted a person turning on a lamp or a toy soundbox using her hand or head. We analyzed the Negative central (Nc) component, associated with the amount of attentional engagement, and the N400 component, reflecting semantic violations. In line with rational-imitation accounts, results revealed that 12- to 14-month-olds (Experiment 1) but not 9-month-olds (Experiment 3) were surprised while observing an inefficient, hands-free, head touch, as indicated by an increased Nc amplitude and an N400-like component. In contrast, infants did not show differences in our measures of VOE between head- and hand-touch outcomes when the model's hands were restrained (Experiment 2). Thus, we suggest that 12- to 14-month-olds incorporate the action context when evaluating action outcomes. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2020 APA, all rights reserved).

Grenzen Sie die semantische und die pragmatische Sprachentwicklungskomponente voneinander ab. Geben Sie jeweils ein Beispiel. [S. 199 f.]

Entwerfen Sie eine Tabelle, in der Sie die vier Theorien der kognitiven Entwicklung bezuglich ihrer Kernannahmen vergleichen. Nennen Sie dabei auch [S. 120–148]

Zeichnen Sie ein Diagramm, das die wechselseitigen Funktions- und Interaktionsbeziehungen zwischen dem Genotyp der Eltern und des Kindes, dem Phanotyp der Eltern und des Kindes sowie der Umwelt illustriert. Geben Sie ein konkretes Beispiel dafur, wie der Phanotyp eines Vorschulkindes Einfluss auf sein Erziehungsumfeld haben kann. [S. 80, 88]

Warum wird Freuds Theorie als eine Theorie der psychosexuellen Entwicklung bezeichnet? [S. 316]

Erklaren Sie die wesentlichen Unterschiede zwischen den evolutionspsychologischen und den biosozialen evolutionstheoretischen Ansatzen der Geschlechterentwicklung. [S. 578 f.]

Formulieren Sie zunachst eine Definition des Konzeptes Intelligenz, ohne direkt auf die drei moglichen Analyseebenen Bezug zu nehmen, und beantworten Sie dabei die Frage „Was ist Intelligenz?“. [S. 277 f.]

Die Multiple-Choice-/Multiple-Select-Fragen konnen mehr als eine richtige Antwortmoglichkeit beinhalten. Es ist auch moglich, dass alle oder keine der Optionen richtig sind.

Enge Freundschaften von Grundschulkindern und eine positive psychologische Entwicklung, z. B. in Bezug auf die psychosoziale Anpassung, das Selbstwertgefuhl und die Leistungsmotivation, hangen statistisch zusammen. Warum lasst sich daraus nicht schliesen, dass Freundschaften (notwendigerweise) die kindliche Entwicklung fordern? [S. 492]

Zusammenfassung. Das Sommertherapiecamp (STC) ist ein multimodaler kognitiv-verhaltenstherapeutischer Intensivbehandlungsansatz für die Aufmerksamkeitsdefizit-/ Hyperaktivitätsstörung (ADHS). Der Artikel berichtet über Befunde einer Wirksamkeitsstudie für das STC mit Prä-Post-Design und Kontrollgruppenvergleich. Die Eltern von N = 31 Kindern (7 – 11 Jahre) mit einer ADHS-Diagnose füllten vor und nach dem dreiwöchigen STC folgende Symptom-Fragebögen aus: CBCL/4 – 18, DISYPS-II FBB-ADHS und FBB-SSV. N = 13 weitere Kinder der gleichen Grundgesamtheit, die in der selben Zeit unbehandelt blieben oder „treatment as usual“ erhielten, dienten als Kontrollgruppe. Die STC-Gruppe zeigte eine Verbesserung der ADHS-Symptomatik sowie eine Reduktion weiterer Verhaltensauffälligkeiten, während vergleichbare Effekte für die Kontrollgruppe nicht nachweisbar waren. Angesichts kleiner Stichproben sind diese Befunde vorerst vorsichtig zu interpretieren, liefern jedoch erste ermutigende Hinweise auf die Brauchbarkeit des STC.

Background Few studies have examined the relation between anxiety disorders in the postpartum period and cognitive as well as language development in infancy. Aims This longitudinal study investigated whether anxiety disorder in the postpartum period is linked to infant development at twelve months. A closer look was also taken at a possible link between maternal interaction and infant development. Study design Subjects were videotaped during a Face-to-Face-Still-Face interaction with their infant (M = 4.0 months). Specific maternal anxiety symptoms were measured by self-report questionnaires (Anxiety Cognition Questionnaire (ACQ), Body Sensations Questionnaire (BSQ), Mobility Inventory (MI)) to check for a connection with infant development. The Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development-III (Bayley-III) were used to assess infant language and cognitive development at one year of age. Subjects n = 34 mothers with anxiety disorder (SCID-I; DSM-IV) and n = 47 healthy mothers with their infant. Outcome measures Infant performance on Bayley-III language and cognitive scales. Results Infants of mothers with anxiety disorder yielded significantly lower language scores than infants of controls. No significant group differences were found regarding infant cognitive development. Exploratory analyses revealed the vital role of “maternal avoidance accompanied” in infant language and cognitive development. Maternal neutral engagement, which lacks positive affect and vocalisations, turned out as the strongest negative predictor of cognitive development. Maternal anxiety cognitions and joint activity in mother-infant interaction were the strongest predictors of infant language performance. Conclusions Results underline the importance to also consider the interaction behaviour of women with anxiety disorders to prevent adverse infant development.

We examined infants’ sensitivity to eye-gaze direction and its influence on object processing in 4-month-old infants by manipulating low-level properties of gaze cues. Infants were presented with two kinds of stimuli that either did or did not cue novel objects. The movement of a schematic image of two eyes (two black circles each moving on a white oval background) led to an enhanced processing of the cued object. A cue with reversed polarity (two white circles each moving on a black oval background) elicited distinctly weaker effects. Results highlight infants’ specific sensitivity to isolated eye gaze which furthermore facilitates object encoding. It is suggested that this sensitivity relies on the typical perceptual pattern of eyes, the black pupil on a white sclera.

Do infants preferentially learn to fear stimuli that represent an ancestral danger? This question was addressed using event-related brain potentials in 9-month-old infants (N = 38). In Experiment 1, infants saw fearful and neutral faces gazing towards spiders and flowers. Then spiders and flowers were presented again without faces. Infants responded with increased attention (signaled by the Negative central, Nc component) to stimuli associated with fear. In particular, spiders that were gaze-cued with a fearful as compared to a neutral expression elicited an increased Nc response. In Experiment 2, targets were snakes and fish. Snakes elicited increased Nc amplitude compared to fish irrespective of emotion condition. Results speak to the evolution-based fear-relevance of spiders and snakes. Our findings provide partial support for social fear learning and preparedness theory (Experiment 1) and non-associative accounts of fear acquisition (Experiment 2). We conclude that both kinds of fear acquisition seem to play a role in early human development.