This study explored the relationship between the mother-infant interaction and the concurrent perceptual-cognitive and intellectual status of the infant. One hundred and eight-nine 12-week-old infants were given a battery of perceptual-cognitive tasks, including the Mental Developmental Index (MDI) of the Bayley Scales, the Corman-Escalona Scales…

Proposes a model for cognitive development and the development of self efficacy in infancy. Examines the effects of two intervention programs in which caregiver responsiveness and amount of stimulation are varied. Subjects were 100 nine-month-old infants from working class families. (BD)

Several sets of evidence are offered to support the hypothesis that cognitive and social development are intimately interrelated, and that mother-infant interaction influences both. A mother's prompt responsiveness to her baby's signals tends to foster the development of varied and clear modes of communication and thus the development of one facet…

Reviews different approaches used over the past two decades to study early behavioral development in infants. Reviews research in areas as physical and cognitive development and the role of adult caretakers. (BD)

The early communication network existing between a mother and her 12-week-old infant was explored. Over 50 infants of both sexes from a variety of social classes were seen in their homes, and a wide variety of maternal and infant behaviors were studied. Of special interest was the vocalization-in-communication data. The results indicate a lawful,…

This study examines the degree to which young children are influenced by the familiarity of an adult participant in their pretend play with toys which vary in resemblance to highly prototypical objects (e.g., cup-like cups or doll-like dolls). A group of 29 children, mean age 21 months, was divided into two experimental groups balanced by sex; 15…

This paper reports on a longitudinal study involving 48 mother-infant dyads that attempts to explore the role of the caregiver-infant interactional environment in determining cognitive functioning as related to an understanding of environmental contingencies. The present report includes (1) a progress report to date of the longitudinal data…

This study examines the effects of sex, socioeconomic status, birth order and birth spacing on the cognitive performance of 12-week-old infants. A brief review of research on neonatal cognitive ability is followed by a description of the study itself. The subjects, 189 three-month-old Caucasian infants (61 first borns, 58 second borns, and 49…

The focus of the study reported here is on two issues: whether the two most elaborate systems of natural observation, that is, those developed by Escalona and Watts could be applied to mother-child interaction recorded in a teaching situation; and whether there are relationships between maternal-child behavior so observed, and a more extended…

This intensive longitudinal study of mother-infant interaction during the first year of life focuses on the development of attachment. Data on 26 middle-class families were collected by five methods: (1) naturalistic observation of each mother-infant pair during 4-hour home visits, which occurred at 3-week intervals from the infants' 3rd to 54th…