The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft Lip
Parent-infant social interactions start early in development, with infants showing active communicative expressions by just two months. A key question is how this social capacity develops. Maternal mirroring of infant expressions is considered an important, intuitive, parenting response, but evidenc...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Wiley
2018-01-01
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| Series: | Neural Plasticity |
| Online Access: | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/5314657 |
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| author | Lynne Murray Laura Bozicevic Pier Francesco Ferrari Kyla Vaillancourt Louise Dalton Tim Goodacre Bhismadev Chakrabarti Sarah Bicknell Peter Cooper Alan Stein Leonardo De Pascalis |
| author_facet | Lynne Murray Laura Bozicevic Pier Francesco Ferrari Kyla Vaillancourt Louise Dalton Tim Goodacre Bhismadev Chakrabarti Sarah Bicknell Peter Cooper Alan Stein Leonardo De Pascalis |
| author_sort | Lynne Murray |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Parent-infant social interactions start early in development, with infants showing active communicative expressions by just two months. A key question is how this social capacity develops. Maternal mirroring of infant expressions is considered an important, intuitive, parenting response, but evidence is sparse in the first two months concerning the conditions under which mirroring occurs and its developmental sequelae, including in clinical samples where the infant’s social expressiveness may be affected. We investigated these questions by comparing the development of mother-infant interactions between a sample where the infant had cleft lip and a normal, unaffected, comparison sample. We videotaped dyads in their homes five times from one to ten weeks and used a microanalytic coding scheme for maternal and infant behaviours, including infant social expressions, and maternal mirroring and marking responses. We also recorded maternal gaze to the infant, using eye-tracking glasses. Although infants with cleft lip did show communicative behaviours, the rate of their development was slower than in comparison infants. This group difference was mediated by a lower rate of mirroring of infant expressions by mothers of infants with cleft lip; this effect was, in turn, partly accounted for by reduced gaze to the infant’s mouth, although the clarity of infant social expressions (indexed by cleft severity) and maternal self-blame regarding the cleft were also influential. Results indicate the robustness of parent-infant interactions but also their sensitivity to specific variations in interactants’ appearance and behaviour. Parental mirroring appears critical in infant social development, likely supported by the mirror neuron system and underlying clinical and, possibly, cultural differences in infant behaviour. These findings suggest new avenues for clinical intervention. |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj-art-cadfcea64fd74b1d82337400ee71d3e3 |
| institution | OA Journals |
| issn | 2090-5904 1687-5443 |
| language | English |
| publishDate | 2018-01-01 |
| publisher | Wiley |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Neural Plasticity |
| spelling | doaj-art-cadfcea64fd74b1d82337400ee71d3e32025-08-20T02:19:37ZengWileyNeural Plasticity2090-59041687-54432018-01-01201810.1155/2018/53146575314657The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft LipLynne Murray0Laura Bozicevic1Pier Francesco Ferrari2Kyla Vaillancourt3Louise Dalton4Tim Goodacre5Bhismadev Chakrabarti6Sarah Bicknell7Peter Cooper8Alan Stein9Leonardo De Pascalis10School of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, UKSchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, UKInstitut des Sciences, Cognitives, Marc Jeannerod CNRS, Bron, FranceSchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, UKSpires Cleft Centre, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UKSpires Cleft Centre, John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford, UKSchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, UKSchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, UKSchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, UKDepartment of Psychiatry, University of Oxford, UKSchool of Psychology and Clinical Language Sciences, University of Reading, UKParent-infant social interactions start early in development, with infants showing active communicative expressions by just two months. A key question is how this social capacity develops. Maternal mirroring of infant expressions is considered an important, intuitive, parenting response, but evidence is sparse in the first two months concerning the conditions under which mirroring occurs and its developmental sequelae, including in clinical samples where the infant’s social expressiveness may be affected. We investigated these questions by comparing the development of mother-infant interactions between a sample where the infant had cleft lip and a normal, unaffected, comparison sample. We videotaped dyads in their homes five times from one to ten weeks and used a microanalytic coding scheme for maternal and infant behaviours, including infant social expressions, and maternal mirroring and marking responses. We also recorded maternal gaze to the infant, using eye-tracking glasses. Although infants with cleft lip did show communicative behaviours, the rate of their development was slower than in comparison infants. This group difference was mediated by a lower rate of mirroring of infant expressions by mothers of infants with cleft lip; this effect was, in turn, partly accounted for by reduced gaze to the infant’s mouth, although the clarity of infant social expressions (indexed by cleft severity) and maternal self-blame regarding the cleft were also influential. Results indicate the robustness of parent-infant interactions but also their sensitivity to specific variations in interactants’ appearance and behaviour. Parental mirroring appears critical in infant social development, likely supported by the mirror neuron system and underlying clinical and, possibly, cultural differences in infant behaviour. These findings suggest new avenues for clinical intervention.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/5314657 |
| spellingShingle | Lynne Murray Laura Bozicevic Pier Francesco Ferrari Kyla Vaillancourt Louise Dalton Tim Goodacre Bhismadev Chakrabarti Sarah Bicknell Peter Cooper Alan Stein Leonardo De Pascalis The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft Lip Neural Plasticity |
| title | The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft Lip |
| title_full | The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft Lip |
| title_fullStr | The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft Lip |
| title_full_unstemmed | The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft Lip |
| title_short | The Effects of Maternal Mirroring on the Development of Infant Social Expressiveness: The Case of Infant Cleft Lip |
| title_sort | effects of maternal mirroring on the development of infant social expressiveness the case of infant cleft lip |
| url | http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/5314657 |
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