Communication is commonly viewed as connecting people through conscious symbolic processes. Infants have an immature communication toolbox, raising the question of how they form a sense of connectedness. In this article, we propose a framework for infants' communication, emphasizing the subtle unconscious behaviors and autonomic contingent signals…

The recognition that adverse childhood experiences have long-term negative effects parallels the explosion of evidence demonstrating how early experience gets into the body and brain. This knowledge, in turn, has significant implications for treatment of emotional and behavioral problems in early childhood. In this article, I offer a guide to…

Impairment in exploratory motor (EM) behavior is part of the Down syndrome behavioral phenotype. Exploratory motor behavior may be a pivotal skill for early intervention with infants with Down syndrome. Exploratory motor impairments are often attributed to general delays in motor development in infants with Down syndrome. A behavior analytic…

This article describes the components of the FAN model used in the Fussy Baby Network® intervention. Careful attunement and matching to the parents' experience help stressed parents feel understood and not alone and foster a sense of coherence during this difficult time. It is this attention to the parent's experience that allows flexibility in…

In this article we argue that current theories on socioemotional development during infancy need to be reconceptualized in order to account for cross-cultural variation in caregiver-infant interaction. In line with the cultural-historical internalization theory of emotional development (Holodynski & Friedlmeier, 2006) and the ecocultural model of…

Research suggests that early self-regulatory difficulties among high-risk newborns can lead to poor interactional difficulties and negative long-term cognitive and social-emotional outcomes if not identified and treated early. This article describes why an individualized, developmentally supportive, relationship-based program, such as the Newborn…

This paper offers an overview of research on infants' early behavior toward televised images, followed by an account of the development of "representational competence" with video. Several aspects of representation are involved in young children's understanding and use of video. From a very young age, children form mental representations of the…

This article aims to demonstrate that it is not only the mind that needs to have the capacity to hold and transform, but also the body. Fordham's concept of the "primary self" emphasises the unity between the body and emotional states in infancy. The self is expressed through actions that bring the infant into contact with the mother and the…

We present a domain-general framework called "constrained attentional associative learning" to provide a developmental account for how and when infants form concepts for animates and inanimates that encapsulate not only their surface appearance but also their movement characteristics. Six simulations with the same general-purpose architecture…

J. Kagan (2008) urges contemporary developmentalists to (a) be cautious when attributing conceptual knowledge to infants based on looking-time performance, (b) constrain their interpretation of infant performance with multiple methodologies, and (c) reconsider the possibility that qualitative development may be the path by which perceptual infants…

Paying attention to development and the earliest possible detection of relevant development disturbances during the first year are among the essential responsibilities of the paediatrician. We present a questionnaire for the documentation of the developmental progress of babies, having been compiled in the Loczy Institute in Budapest, according to…

The main purpose of this paper is to delineate methods of data collection and coding currently being used in a longitudinal observational study of toddlers in 25 black families in Oakland, California. Data collection activities, accomplished through monthly three-hour visits to each home, focused on five types of data: (1) videotaped and…

Provides an overview of the development of the Brazelton Neonatal Behavioral Assessment Scale (NBAS), the nature of the instrument and conditions for its proper administration, and issues underlying the use of the NBAS in research (e.g., reliability). The first in a series of articles in a single monograph assessing the NBAS. (BH)

The ability to form secure attachments during early childhood promotes a lifetime of emotional health. This article describes emotional milestones for babies (i.e., activities that promote self-comfort and self-control), as well as for toddlers. In the case of toddlers, a profound emotional milestone that is accomplished during the first year is…

The Parent 'N' Me course at Fitchburg State College in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, is for parents who wish to observe the competency of their 2- to 6-month-old infants, encouraging an infant-oriented environment that allows the infants to become attentive, active, exploring individuals who reward themselves in the mastery of new tasks. The course…