With reference to reciprocity and
interactional synchrony, discuss
infant– caregiver interactions. (16
marks)
The interactions between infants and their caregivers provide awareness into the types
of attachments. When an infant responds to the actions of another, it is called
reciprocity. These actions, provided from a care-giver, entice a reaction from the infant.
An observational study was conducted by Meltzoff & Moore (1977) where adults
showed facial expressions and hand gestures to a child. After the display from the adult,
a dummy was taken away from the child’s mouth and their expressions were recorded.
This study showed a link between the way the child acted and the actions of the adult,
displaying reciprocity
When infants copy the actions/ emotions of another, interactional synchrony takes
place. For instance, facial expressions. The child will carry out the actions of the the
adult at the same time and the two are shown to be synchronised. This provides a
sustainable communication between both parties.
A limitation of studies into caregiver-infant interactions is the doubt-worthy reliability of
conducting tests on children. This is because infants move their mouths and wave their
arms constantly, which exists as a problem for the researchers investigating intentional
behaviour. Because of this, we are unsure if the infants were engaging in reciprocity or
interactional synchrony due to the fact that some behaviours could have occurred by
chance. This casts doubt in the validity of researches with relations to reciprocity and
interactional synchrony and therefore researchers must be cautious when investigating
the findings from research in this area
With reference to reciprocity and interactional synchrony, discuss infant– caregiver interactions. (16 marks) 1
interactional synchrony, discuss
infant– caregiver interactions. (16
marks)
The interactions between infants and their caregivers provide awareness into the types
of attachments. When an infant responds to the actions of another, it is called
reciprocity. These actions, provided from a care-giver, entice a reaction from the infant.
An observational study was conducted by Meltzoff & Moore (1977) where adults
showed facial expressions and hand gestures to a child. After the display from the adult,
a dummy was taken away from the child’s mouth and their expressions were recorded.
This study showed a link between the way the child acted and the actions of the adult,
displaying reciprocity
When infants copy the actions/ emotions of another, interactional synchrony takes
place. For instance, facial expressions. The child will carry out the actions of the the
adult at the same time and the two are shown to be synchronised. This provides a
sustainable communication between both parties.
A limitation of studies into caregiver-infant interactions is the doubt-worthy reliability of
conducting tests on children. This is because infants move their mouths and wave their
arms constantly, which exists as a problem for the researchers investigating intentional
behaviour. Because of this, we are unsure if the infants were engaging in reciprocity or
interactional synchrony due to the fact that some behaviours could have occurred by
chance. This casts doubt in the validity of researches with relations to reciprocity and
interactional synchrony and therefore researchers must be cautious when investigating
the findings from research in this area
With reference to reciprocity and interactional synchrony, discuss infant– caregiver interactions. (16 marks) 1
