Open AccessInfants’ early visual attention and social engagement as developmental precursors to joint attention.
Author(s) -
Brenda Salley,
Stephen J. Sheinkopf,
A. Rebecca Neal-Beevers,
Elena J. Tenenbaum,
Cynthia L. Miller-Loncar,
Ed Tronick,
Linda L. LaGasse,
Seetha Shankaran,
Henrietta S. Bada,
Charles R. Bauer,
Toni Whitaker,
Jane Hammond,
Barry M. Lester
Publication year - 2016
Publication title -
developmental psychology
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 2.318
H-Index - 213
eISSN - 1939-0599
pISSN - 0012-1649
DOI - 10.1037/dev0000205
Subject(s) - joint attention , psychology , psycinfo , developmental psychology , longitudinal study , visual attention , child development , cognition , psychiatry , medline , autism , medicine , pathology , political science , law
This study examined infants' early visual attention (at 1 month of age) and social engagement (4 months) as predictors of their later joint attention (12 and 18 months). The sample (n = 325), drawn from the Maternal Lifestyle Study, a longitudinal multicenter project conducted at 4 centers of the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development Neonatal Research Network, included high-risk (cocaine-exposed) and matched noncocaine-exposed infants. Hierarchical regressions revealed that infants' attention orienting at 1 month significantly predicted more frequent initiating joint attention at 12 (but not 18) months of age. Social engagement at 4 months predicted initiating joint attention at 18 months. Results provide the first empirical evidence for the role of visual attention and social engagement behaviors as developmental precursors for later joint attention outcome. (PsycINFO Database Record