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Vannasing P, Dionne-Dostie E, Tremblay J, Paquette N, Collignon O, Gallagher A. Electrophysiological responses of audiovisual integration from infancy to adulthood. Brain Cogn 2024; 178:106180. [PMID: 38815526 DOI: 10.1016/j.bandc.2024.106180] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/25/2024] [Revised: 05/17/2024] [Accepted: 05/17/2024] [Indexed: 06/01/2024]
Abstract
Our ability to merge information from different senses into a unified percept is a crucial perceptual process for efficient interaction with our multisensory environment. Yet, the developmental process underlying how the brain implements multisensory integration (MSI) remains poorly known. This cross-sectional study aims to characterize the developmental patterns of audiovisual events in 131 individuals aged from 3 months to 30 years. Electroencephalography (EEG) was recorded during a passive task, including simple auditory, visual, and audiovisual stimuli. In addition to examining age-related variations in MSI responses, we investigated Event-Related Potentials (ERPs) linked with auditory and visual stimulation alone. This was done to depict the typical developmental trajectory of unisensory processing from infancy to adulthood within our sample and to contextualize the maturation effects of MSI in relation to unisensory development. Comparing the neural response to audiovisual stimuli to the sum of the unisensory responses revealed signs of MSI in the ERPs, more specifically between the P2 and N2 components (P2 effect). Furthermore, adult-like MSI responses emerge relatively late in the development, around 8 years old. The automatic integration of simple audiovisual stimuli is a long developmental process that emerges during childhood and continues to mature during adolescence with ERP latencies decreasing with age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Phetsamone Vannasing
- Neurodevelopmental Optical Imaging Laboratory (LION Lab), Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada.
| | - Emmanuelle Dionne-Dostie
- Neurodevelopmental Optical Imaging Laboratory (LION Lab), Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada.
| | - Julie Tremblay
- Neurodevelopmental Optical Imaging Laboratory (LION Lab), Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada.
| | - Natacha Paquette
- Neurodevelopmental Optical Imaging Laboratory (LION Lab), Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada.
| | - Olivier Collignon
- Institute of Psychology (IPSY) and Institute of Neuroscience (IoNS), Université Catholique de Louvain, Louvain-La-Neuve, Belgium; School of Health Sciences, HES-SO Valais-Wallis, The Sense Innovation and Research Center, Lausanne and Sion, Switzerland.
| | - Anne Gallagher
- Neurodevelopmental Optical Imaging Laboratory (LION Lab), Sainte-Justine University Hospital Research Centre, Montreal, QC, Canada; Cerebrum, Department of Psychology, University of Montreal, Montreal, Qc, Canada.
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Anderson EM, Candy TR, Gold JM, Smith LB. An edge-simplicity bias in the visual input to young infants. SCIENCE ADVANCES 2024; 10:eadj8571. [PMID: 38728400 PMCID: PMC11086614 DOI: 10.1126/sciadv.adj8571] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/19/2023] [Accepted: 04/09/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
The development of sparse edge coding in the mammalian visual cortex depends on early visual experience. In humans, there are multiple indicators that the statistics of early visual experiences has unique properties that may support these developments. However, there are no direct measures of the edge statistics of infant daily-life experience. Using head-mounted cameras to capture egocentric images of young infants and adults in the home, we found infant images to have distinct edge statistics relative to adults. For infants, scenes with sparse edge patterns-few edges and few orientations-dominate. The findings implicate biased early input at the scale of daily life that is likely specific to the early months after birth and provide insights into the quality, amount, and timing of the visual experiences during the foundational developmental period for human vision.
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Affiliation(s)
- Erin M. Anderson
- Psychological and Brain Sciences Department, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - T. Rowan Candy
- School of Optometry, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - Jason M. Gold
- Psychological and Brain Sciences Department, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
| | - Linda B. Smith
- Psychological and Brain Sciences Department, Indiana University, Bloomington, IN 47405, USA
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Endevelt-Shapira Y, Bosseler AN, Zhao TC, Mizrahi JC, Meltzoff AN, Kuhl PK. Heart-to-heart: infant heart rate at 3 months is linked to infant-directed speech, mother-infant interaction, and later language outcomes. Front Hum Neurosci 2024; 18:1380075. [PMID: 38756844 PMCID: PMC11096508 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2024.1380075] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/01/2024] [Accepted: 04/16/2024] [Indexed: 05/18/2024] Open
Abstract
Introduction Previous studies underscore the importance of speech input, particularly infant-directed speech (IDS) during one-on-one (1:1) parent-infant interaction, for child language development. We hypothesize that infants' attention to speech input, specifically IDS, supports language acquisition. In infants, attention and orienting responses are associated with heart rate deceleration. We examined whether individual differences in infants' heart rate measured during 1:1 mother-infant interaction is related to speech input and later language development scores in a longitudinal study. Methods Using a sample of 31 3-month-olds, we assessed infant heart rate during mother-infant face-to-face interaction in a laboratory setting. Multiple measures of speech input were gathered at 3 months of age during naturally occurring interactions at home using the Language ENvironment Analysis (LENA) system. Language outcome measures were assessed in the same children at 30 months of age using the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventory (CDI). Results Two novel findings emerged. First, we found that higher maternal IDS in a 1:1 context at home, as well as more mother-infant conversational turns at home, are associated with a lower heart rate measured during mother-infant social interaction in the laboratory. Second, we found significant associations between infant heart rate during mother-infant interaction in the laboratory at 3 months and prospective language development (CDI scores) at 30 months of age. Discussion Considering the current results in conjunction with other converging theoretical and neuroscientific data, we argue that high IDS input in the context of 1:1 social interaction increases infants' attention to speech and that infants' attention to speech in early development fosters their prospective language growth.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yaara Endevelt-Shapira
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Alexis N. Bosseler
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - T. Christina Zhao
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
- Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Julia C. Mizrahi
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Andrew N. Meltzoff
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
- Department of Psychology, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
| | - Patricia K. Kuhl
- Institute for Learning & Brain Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
- Department of Speech and Hearing Sciences, University of Washington, Seattle, WA, United States
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Kaletsch K, Liszkowski U. A new online paradigm to measure spontaneous pointing in infants and caregivers. Infant Behav Dev 2024; 74:101907. [PMID: 38011762 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2023.101907] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/20/2023] [Revised: 10/30/2023] [Accepted: 11/10/2023] [Indexed: 11/29/2023]
Abstract
Index-finger pointing is a milestone in the development of referential communication. Previous research has investigated infants' pointing with a variety of paradigms ranging from parent reports to field observations to experimental settings, suggesting that lab-based semi-natural interactional settings seem especially suited to elicit and measure infant pointing. With the Covid-pandemic the need for a comparable online tool became evident enabling also efficient, low-cost, large-scale, diverse data collection. The current study introduces a remote online paradigm, based on the established live 'decorated-room' paradigm. In Experiment 1, 12-months old infants and their caregivers (N = 24) looked at digitally presented stimuli together while being recorded with their webcam. We coded pointing gestures of infants and caregivers as well as caregivers' responses to infants' pointing. In Experiment 2 (N = 47), we optimized stimuli and investigated influences of stimulus characteristics. We systematically varied the style of depiction, stimulus complexity, motion, and facial stimuli. Main findings were that infants and caregivers pointed spontaneously, with mean behaviors ranging within the benchmarks of previously reported findings of the live decorated-room paradigm. Further, the social setting was preserved as revealed by significant relations between parents' responsive points and infants' pointing frequency. Analyses of stimuli characteristics revealed that infants pointed more to stimuli depicting faces than to other stimuli. The new remote online paradigm proves a useful addition to established paradigms. It offers novel opportunities for simplified assessments, large-scale sampling, and worldwide, diversified data collection.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Ulf Liszkowski
- Department of Developmental Psychology, University of Hamburg, Germany
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Sacrey LAR, Zwaigenbaum L, Elshamy Y, Smith IM, Brian JA, Wass S. Comparative strengths and challenges on face-to-face and computer-based attention tasks in autistic and neurotypical toddlers. Autism Res 2023; 16:1501-1511. [PMID: 37448306 DOI: 10.1002/aur.2983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 06/27/2023] [Indexed: 07/15/2023]
Abstract
The objectives were to compare patterns of visual attention in toddlers diagnosed with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) as compared to their sex- and age-matched neurotypical (NT) peers. Participants included 23 toddlers with ASD and 19 NT toddlers (mean age: 25.52 versus 25.21 months, respectively) assessed using computerized tasks to measure sustained attention, disengaging attention, and cognitive control, as well as an in-person task to assess joint attention. Toddlers in the ASD group showed increased looking durations on the sustained attention task, as well as reduced frequencies of responding to and initiating joint attention compared to NT peers, but showed no differences on tasks of disengaging attention and cognitive control. The results suggest that toddlers with ASD have attentional strengths that may provide a foundation for building attention, communicative, and ultimately, academic skills.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lori-Ann R Sacrey
- Autism Research Centre, Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital and Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Lonnie Zwaigenbaum
- Autism Research Centre, Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital and Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Yomna Elshamy
- Autism Research Centre, Glenrose Rehabilitation Hospital and Department of Pediatrics, University of Alberta, Edmonton, Alberta, Canada
| | - Isabel M Smith
- IWK Health Centre and Departments of Pediatrics and Psychology and Neuroscience, Dalhousie University, Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada
| | - Jessica A Brian
- Bloorview Research Institute and Department of Pediatrics, University of Toronto, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - Sam Wass
- Department of Psychological Sciences, University of East London, London, UK
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Edgar EV, Todd JT, Eschman B, Hayes T, Bahrick LE. Effects of English versus Spanish language exposure on basic multisensory attention skills across 3 to 36 months of age. Dev Psychol 2023; 59:1359-1376. [PMID: 37199930 PMCID: PMC10523924 DOI: 10.1037/dev0001549] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/19/2023]
Abstract
Recent research has demonstrated that individual differences in infant attention to faces and voices of women speaking predict language outcomes in childhood. These findings have been generated using two new audiovisual attention assessments appropriate for infants and young children, the Multisensory Attention Assessment Protocol (MAAP) and the Intersensory Processing Efficiency Protocol (IPEP). The MAAP and IPEP assess three basic attention skills (sustaining attention, shifting/disengaging, intersensory matching), as well as distractibility, deployed in the context of naturalistic audiovisual social (women speaking English) and nonsocial events (objects impacting a surface). Might children with differential exposure to Spanish versus English show different patterns of attention to social events on these protocols as a function of language familiarity? We addressed this question in several ways using children (n = 81 dual-language learners; n = 23 monolingual-language learners) from South Florida, tested longitudinally across 3-36 months. Surprisingly, results indicated no significant English language advantage on any attention measure for children from monolingual English versus dual English-Spanish language environments. Second, for dual-language learners, exposure to English changed across age, decreasing slightly from 3-12 months and then increasing considerably by 36 months. Furthermore, for dual-language learners, structural equation modeling analyses revealed no English language advantage on the MAAP or IPEP as a function of degree of English language exposure. The few relations found were in the direction of greater performance for children with greater Spanish exposure. Together, findings indicate no English language advantage for basic multisensory attention skills assessed by the MAAP or IPEP between the ages of 3 to 36 months. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).
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Bursalıoğlu A, Michalak A, Guy MW. Intersensory redundancy impedes face recognition in 12-month-old infants. Front Psychol 2023; 14:1210132. [PMID: 37529309 PMCID: PMC10389088 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.1210132] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/21/2023] [Accepted: 06/26/2023] [Indexed: 08/03/2023] Open
Abstract
This study examined the role of intersensory redundancy on 12-month-old infants' attention to and processing of face stimuli. Two experiments were conducted. In Experiment 1, 72 12-month-olds were tested using an online platform called Lookit. Infants were familiarized with two videos of an actor reciting a children's story presented simultaneously. A soundtrack either matched one of the videos (experimental condition) or neither of the videos (control condition). Visual-paired comparison (VPC) trials were completed to measure looking preferences for the faces presented synchronously and asynchronously during familiarization and for novel faces. Neither group displayed looking preferences during the VPC trials. It is possible that the complexity of the familiarization phase made the modality-specific face properties (i.e., facial characteristics and configuration) difficult to process. In Experiment 2, 56 12-month-old infants were familiarized with the video of only one actor presented either synchronously or asynchronously with the soundtrack. Following familiarization, participants completed a VPC procedure including the familiar face and a novel face. Results from Experiment 2 showed that infants in the synchronous condition paid more attention during familiarization than infants in the asynchronous condition. Infants in the asynchronous condition demonstrated recognition of the familiar face. These findings suggest that the competing face stimuli in the Experiment 1 were too complex for the facial characteristics to be processed. The procedure in Experiment 2 led to increased processing of the face in the asynchronous presentation. These results indicate that intersensory redundancy in the presentation of synchronous audiovisual faces is very salient, discouraging the processing of modality-specific visual properties. This research contributes to the understanding of face processing in multimodal contexts, which have been understudied, although a great deal of naturalistic face exposure occurs multimodally.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aslı Bursalıoğlu
- Department of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, Chicago, IL, United States
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Wong JN, Walter JR, Conrad EC, Seshadri DR, Lee JY, Gonzalez H, Reuther W, Hong SJ, Pini N, Marsillio L, Moskalyk K, Vicenteno M, Padilla E, Gann O, Chung HU, Ryu D, du Plessis C, Odendaal HJ, Fifer WP, Wu JY, Xu S. A comprehensive wireless neurological and cardiopulmonary monitoring platform for pediatrics. PLOS DIGITAL HEALTH 2023; 2:e0000291. [PMID: 37410727 PMCID: PMC10325120 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pdig.0000291] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 06/01/2023] [Indexed: 07/08/2023]
Abstract
Neurodevelopment in the first 10 years of life is a critical time window during which milestones that define an individual's functional potential are achieved. Comprehensive multimodal neurodevelopmental monitoring is particularly crucial for socioeconomically disadvantaged, marginalized, historically underserved and underrepresented communities as well as medically underserved areas. Solutions designed for use outside the traditional clinical environment represent an opportunity for addressing such health inequalities. In this work, we present an experimental platform, ANNE EEG, which adds 16-channel cerebral activity monitoring to the existing, USA FDA-cleared ANNE wireless monitoring platform which provides continuous electrocardiography, respiratory rate, pulse oximetry, motion, and temperature measurements. The system features low-cost consumables, real-time control and streaming with widely available mobile devices, and fully wearable operation to allow a child to remain in their naturalistic environment. This multi-center pilot study successfully collected ANNE EEG recordings from 91 neonatal and pediatric patients at academic quaternary pediatric care centers and in LMIC settings. We demonstrate the practicality and feasibility to conduct electroencephalography studies with high levels of accuracy, validated via both quantitative and qualitative metrics, compared against gold standard systems. An overwhelming majority of parents surveyed during studies indicated not only an overall preference for the wireless system, but also that its use would improve their children's physical and emotional health. Our findings demonstrate the potential for the ANNE system to perform multimodal monitoring to screen for a variety of neurologic diseases that have the potential to negatively impact neurodevelopment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jeremy N Wong
- Epilepsy Center, Division of Pediatric Neurology, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Jessica R Walter
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Erin C Conrad
- Department of Neurology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States of America
| | | | - Jong Yoon Lee
- Sibel Inc., Niles, Illinois, United States of America
| | | | | | - Sue J Hong
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Division of Critical Care, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Critical Care, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Nicolò Pini
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Lauren Marsillio
- Division of Critical Care, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Critical Care, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Khrystyna Moskalyk
- Epilepsy Center, Division of Pediatric Neurology, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Mariana Vicenteno
- Epilepsy Center, Division of Pediatric Neurology, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Erik Padilla
- Epilepsy Center, Division of Pediatric Neurology, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Olivia Gann
- Sibel Inc., Niles, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Ha Uk Chung
- Sibel Inc., Niles, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Dennis Ryu
- Sibel Inc., Niles, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Carlie du Plessis
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - Hein J Odendaal
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa
| | - William P Fifer
- Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
- Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, New York, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, New York, United States of America
| | - Joyce Y Wu
- Epilepsy Center, Division of Pediatric Neurology, Lurie Children's Hospital of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Pediatrics, Division of Neurology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
| | - Shuai Xu
- Sibel Inc., Niles, Illinois, United States of America
- Simpson Querrey Institute, Northwestern University, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Biomedical Engineering, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, United States of America
- Department of Dermatology, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, Illinois, United States of America
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Conejero Á, Rico-Picó J, Moyano S, Hoyo Á, Rueda MR. Predicting behavioral and brain markers of inhibitory control at preschool age from early measures of executive attention. Front Psychol 2023; 14:983361. [PMID: 36935994 PMCID: PMC10018214 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2023.983361] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2022] [Accepted: 02/03/2023] [Indexed: 03/06/2023] Open
Abstract
Background Inhibitory control (IC) is the ability to prevent prepotent responses when inappropriate. Longitudinal research on IC development has mainly focused on early childhood and adolescence, while research on IC development in the first years of life is still scarce. To address this gap in the literature, we explored the association between executive attention (EA) and elementary forms of IC in infancy and toddlerhood, with individual differences in IC later at 5 years of age. Method We conducted a five-wave longitudinal study in which children's EA and IC (n = 96) were tested at the age of 9 and 16 months and 2, 3, and 5 years. Children performed various age-appropriate EA and IC tasks in each wave, measuring inhibition of attention, endogenous control of attention, inhibition of the response, and conflict inhibition. At 5 years of age, IC was measured with a Go/No-go task while recording event-related potentials. After correlation analyses, structural equation model analyses were performed to predict IC at 5 years of age from EA and early IC measures. Results The results revealed that EA at 9 months predicted IC measures at 2 years of age. Likewise, measures of IC at 2 years predicted performance on the Go/No-go task at behavioral and neural levels. No direct association was found between EA at 9 months and IC at 5 years of age. We further observed that some EA and IC measures were not associated across time. Conclusion As we expected, EA skills in infancy and toddlerhood were related to better performance of children on IC tasks, toghether with a more mature inhibition-related brain functioning. Altogether, the results indicate that IC in early childhood could be predicted from EA and IC at 9 months and 2 years of age and suggest that the early emergence of IC relies on the development of particular EA and basic IC skills. However, some discontinuities in the longitudinal development of IC are observed in the first 5 years of life. These findings provide further support for the hierarchical model of IC development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Ángela Conejero
- Department of Developmental and Educational Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Josué Rico-Picó
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Sebastián Moyano
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - Ángela Hoyo
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
| | - M. Rosario Rueda
- Mind, Brain and Behaviour Research Centre (CIMCYC), University of Granada, Granada, Spain
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Granada, Granada, Spain
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10
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Brandes-Aitken A, Metser M, Braren SH, Vogel SC, Brito NH. Neurophysiology of sustained attention in early infancy: Investigating longitudinal relations with recognition memory outcomes. Infant Behav Dev 2023; 70:101807. [PMID: 36634407 PMCID: PMC9901300 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2022.101807] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/02/2022] [Revised: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 12/21/2022] [Indexed: 01/11/2023]
Abstract
The ability to sustain attention is a critical cognitive domain that emerges in infancy and is predictive of a multitude of cognitive processes. Here, we used a heart rate (HR) defined measure of sustained attention to assess corresponding changes in frontal electroencephalography (EEG) power at 3 months of age. Second, we examined how the neural underpinnings of HR-defined sustained attention were associated with sustained attention engagement. Third, we evaluated if neural or behavioral sustained attention measures at 3-months predicted subsequent recognition memory scores at 9 months of age. Seventy-five infants were included at 3 months of age and provided usable attention and EEG data and 25 infants returned to the lab at 9 months and provided usable recognition memory data. The current study focuses on oscillatory power in the theta (4-6 Hz) frequency band during phases of HR-defined sustained attention and inattention phases. Results revealed that theta power was significantly higher during phases of sustained attention. Second, higher theta power during sustained attention was positively associated with proportion of time in sustained attention. Third, longitudinal analyses indicated a significant positive association between theta power during sustained attention on 9-month visual paired comparison scores such that higher theta power predicted higher visual paired comparison scores at 9-months. These results highlight the interrelation of the attention and arousal systems which have longitudinal implications for subsequent recognition memory processes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Annie Brandes-Aitken
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA; Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA; Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, USA.
| | - Maya Metser
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA,Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Stephen H. Braren
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA,Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Sarah C. Vogel
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA,Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, USA
| | - Natalie H. Brito
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY, USA,Department of Psychiatry, Columbia University Irving Medical Center, New York, NY, USA,Division of Developmental Neuroscience, New York State Psychiatric Institute, New York, NY, USA
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Ibbotson P. The Development of Executive Function: Mechanisms of Change and Functional Pressures. JOURNAL OF COGNITION AND DEVELOPMENT 2023. [DOI: 10.1080/15248372.2022.2160719] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 01/06/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Paul Ibbotson
- School of Education, Childhood, Youth and Sport, The Open University, Milton Keynes, UK
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12
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Tomalski P, López Pérez D, Radkowska A, Malinowska-Korczak A. Dyadic interactions during infant learning: Exploring infant-parent exchanges in experimental eye-tracking studies. Infant Behav Dev 2022; 69:101780. [DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2022.101780] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2021] [Revised: 09/20/2022] [Accepted: 10/12/2022] [Indexed: 11/05/2022]
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13
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Schlegelmilch K, Wertz AE. Visual segmentation of complex naturalistic structures in an infant eye-tracking search task. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0266158. [PMID: 35363809 PMCID: PMC8975119 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0266158] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/12/2021] [Accepted: 03/15/2022] [Indexed: 11/24/2022] Open
Abstract
An infant’s everyday visual environment is composed of a complex array of entities, some of which are well integrated into their surroundings. Although infants are already sensitive to some categories in their first year of life, it is not clear which visual information supports their detection of meaningful elements within naturalistic scenes. Here we investigated the impact of image characteristics on 8-month-olds’ search performance using a gaze contingent eye-tracking search task. Infants had to detect a target patch on a background image. The stimuli consisted of images taken from three categories: vegetation, non-living natural elements (e.g., stones), and manmade artifacts, for which we also assessed target background differences in lower- and higher-level visual properties. Our results showed that larger target-background differences in the statistical properties scaling invariance and entropy, and also stimulus backgrounds including low pictorial depth, predicted better detection performance. Furthermore, category membership only affected search performance if supported by luminance contrast. Data from an adult comparison group also indicated that infants’ search performance relied more on lower-order visual properties than adults. Taken together, these results suggest that infants use a combination of property- and category-related information to parse complex visual stimuli.
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Affiliation(s)
- Karola Schlegelmilch
- Max Planck Research Group Naturalistic Social Cognition, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
- * E-mail:
| | - Annie E. Wertz
- Max Planck Research Group Naturalistic Social Cognition, Max Planck Institute for Human Development, Berlin, Germany
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14
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Carnevali L, Gui A, Jones EJH, Farroni T. Face Processing in Early Development: A Systematic Review of Behavioral Studies and Considerations in Times of COVID-19 Pandemic. Front Psychol 2022; 13:778247. [PMID: 35250718 PMCID: PMC8894249 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.778247] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 6.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Accepted: 01/21/2022] [Indexed: 12/17/2022] Open
Abstract
Human faces are one of the most prominent stimuli in the visual environment of young infants and convey critical information for the development of social cognition. During the COVID-19 pandemic, mask wearing has become a common practice outside the home environment. With masks covering nose and mouth regions, the facial cues available to the infant are impoverished. The impact of these changes on development is unknown but is critical to debates around mask mandates in early childhood settings. As infants grow, they increasingly interact with a broader range of familiar and unfamiliar people outside the home; in these settings, mask wearing could possibly influence social development. In order to generate hypotheses about the effects of mask wearing on infant social development, in the present work, we systematically review N = 129 studies selected based on the most recent PRISMA guidelines providing a state-of-the-art framework of behavioral studies investigating face processing in early infancy. We focused on identifying sensitive periods during which being exposed to specific facial features or to the entire face configuration has been found to be important for the development of perceptive and socio-communicative skills. For perceptive skills, infants gradually learn to analyze the eyes or the gaze direction within the context of the entire face configuration. This contributes to identity recognition as well as emotional expression discrimination. For socio-communicative skills, direct gaze and emotional facial expressions are crucial for attention engagement while eye-gaze cuing is important for joint attention. Moreover, attention to the mouth is particularly relevant for speech learning. We discuss possible implications of the exposure to masked faces for developmental needs and functions. Providing groundwork for further research, we encourage the investigation of the consequences of mask wearing for infants' perceptive and socio-communicative development, suggesting new directions within the research field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laura Carnevali
- Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
| | - Anna Gui
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Emily J. H. Jones
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Birkbeck, University of London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Teresa Farroni
- Department of Developmental Psychology and Socialization, University of Padua, Padua, Italy
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15
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Bruce M, Panneton R, Taylor C. Multisensory integration and maternal sensitivity are related to each other and predictive of expressive vocabulary in 24-month-olds. J Exp Child Psychol 2022; 214:105304. [PMID: 34624708 PMCID: PMC8608724 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2021.105304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/25/2021] [Revised: 09/08/2021] [Accepted: 09/08/2021] [Indexed: 02/03/2023]
Abstract
Multisensory integration (MSI) is the ability to combine temporally synchronous, amodally specified sensory information to create rich, coordinated perceptual experiences. In early development, attention is directed toward such information in both social contexts (e.g., human speakers) and nonsocial contexts (e.g., multimodal toys). Parenting behaviors may support and sculpt multisensory integration by providing children with opportunities to experience amodally specified information (e.g., contingent face-to-face interactions). This study examined (a) whether 24-month-olds' MSI abilities differed as a function of context (social or nonsocial) and competition for attention (low or high), (b) whether MSI predicted expressive vocabulary, and (c) whether maternal sensitivity (MS) was related to both MSI and language. A total of 32 24-month-olds were tested in the Multisensory Attention Assessment Protocol, an audiovisual task that presents laterally positioned social/nonsocial events with and without a central distractor. Their mothers completed the MacArthur-Bates Communicative Development Inventories and participated in a free-play period with their children for MS coding. Results showed MSI in both social and nonsocial conditions (i.e., toddlers paid more attention to the "match"), but only the ability to maintain attention to the social match was related to toddlers' expressive vocabulary. In addition, MS was positively correlated with toddlers' expressive language and social MSI performance. Taken together, the pattern of results shows important relations between emerging integration abilities and parenting behavior as well as the ability of both factors to positively influence word learning during early toddlerhood.
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16
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Context matters: Cortical rhythms in infants across baseline and play. Infant Behav Dev 2021; 66:101665. [PMID: 34823054 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2021.101665] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/18/2021] [Revised: 11/07/2021] [Accepted: 11/08/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022]
Abstract
This study uses electroencephalography (EEG) to examine infants' cortical activity during baseline while they watched a dynamic audiovisual display and while engaged in play with an object and parent. Fifty-five 6- to 12-month-old infants participated in both baseline and play with their mother. We hypothesized that the baseline task recruits relatively more exogenous attention due to the dynamic audiovisual task, while the play task recruits relatively more endogenous attention when exploring the toy. We expected higher frontal theta and alpha power during play, reflecting higher endogenous control of attention compared to the baseline task. We expected the faster rhythms, beta and gamma, to have higher power during baseline at frontal locations, reflecting the salient attention-grabbing (exogenous) attributes of the baseline task in comparison to play. We also examined changes in parietal power between contexts. Our results were consistent with the expectations. Theta (3-6 Hz) and alpha (6-9 Hz) power were higher at frontal sites (Fp1/Fp2) during play relative to baseline. Beta (9-30 Hz) and gamma (30-50 Hz) power were higher at frontal (Fp1/Fp2) and frontal medial sites (F3/F4) during baseline relative to play. Alpha power was higher during baseline at frontal medial sites (F3/F4) relative to play. Beta and gamma power was higher during play at parietal sites (P3/P4). The results are discussed in terms of the potential role of different cortical rhythms over the scalp as they respond to relative endogenous and exogenous attentional demands.
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17
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Anderson AJ, Perone S, Campagna A, Gartstein MA. Play with Mom: Insights into Regulatory Processes at Work during Baseline and Parent-infant Play. Dev Neuropsychol 2021; 46:447-462. [PMID: 34587837 DOI: 10.1080/87565641.2021.1981904] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
Frontal alpha asymmetry (FAA) is a neural correlate of approach and avoidance motivational processes. This study examined the shift in FAA from baseline to play, associations to parent-reported regulatory abilities, and parent and infant behaviors during play. Infants exhibited greater left frontal alpha activity (more approach) during baseline relative to play. Shifts in FAA toward greater left frontal alpha activity (more approach) from baseline to play were associated with parent ratings of infants' regulatory behaviors and object exploration exhibited during play. These results highlight ongoing regulatory processes involved in positively valenced tasks typical in infants' daily life.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alana J Anderson
- Department of Human Development, Washington State University, Pullman, United States
| | - Sammy Perone
- Department of Human Development, Washington State University, Pullman, United States
| | - Allegra Campagna
- Department of Psychology, Washington State University, Pullman, United States
| | - Maria A Gartstein
- Department of Psychology, Washington State University, Pullman, United States
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18
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Zaadnoordijk L, Buckler H, Cusack R, Tsuji S, Bergmann C. A Global Perspective on Testing Infants Online: Introducing ManyBabies-AtHome. Front Psychol 2021; 12:703234. [PMID: 34566781 PMCID: PMC8458619 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2021.703234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/30/2021] [Accepted: 08/09/2021] [Indexed: 11/18/2022] Open
Abstract
Online testing holds great promise for infant scientists. It could increase participant diversity, improve reproducibility and collaborative possibilities, and reduce costs for researchers and participants. However, despite the rise of platforms and participant databases, little work has been done to overcome the challenges of making this approach available to researchers across the world. In this paper, we elaborate on the benefits of online infant testing from a global perspective and identify challenges for the international community that have been outside of the scope of previous literature. Furthermore, we introduce ManyBabies-AtHome, an international, multi-lab collaboration that is actively working to facilitate practical and technical aspects of online testing and address ethical concerns regarding data storage and protection, and cross-cultural variation. The ultimate goal of this collaboration is to improve the method of testing infants online and make it globally available.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lorijn Zaadnoordijk
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Helen Buckler
- School of English, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | - Rhodri Cusack
- Trinity College Institute of Neuroscience, Trinity College Dublin, Dublin, Ireland
| | - Sho Tsuji
- International Research Center for Neurointelligence, The University of Tokyo, Tokyo, Japan
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19
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Wass SV. The origins of effortful control: How early development within arousal/regulatory systems influences attentional and affective control. DEVELOPMENTAL REVIEW 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.dr.2021.100978] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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20
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O'Toole KJ, Kannass KN. Background television and distractibility in young children: Does program content matter? JOURNAL OF APPLIED DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2021. [DOI: 10.1016/j.appdev.2021.101280] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/21/2022]
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21
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Phillips E, Wass S. Bidirectional Mechanisms rather than Alternatives: The Role of Sustained Attention in Interactive Contexts Can Only Be Understood through Joint Attention. Hum Dev 2021. [DOI: 10.1159/000515869] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/19/2022]
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22
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Behavioural Measures of Infant Activity but Not Attention Associate with Later Preschool ADHD Traits. Brain Sci 2021; 11:brainsci11050524. [PMID: 33919004 PMCID: PMC8143002 DOI: 10.3390/brainsci11050524] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/01/2020] [Revised: 03/15/2021] [Accepted: 03/18/2021] [Indexed: 11/16/2022] Open
Abstract
Mapping infant neurocognitive differences that precede later ADHD-related behaviours is critical for designing early interventions. In this study, we investigated (1) group differences in a battery of measures assessing aspects of attention and activity level in infants with and without a family history of ADHD or related conditions (ASD), and (2) longitudinal associations between the infant measures and preschool ADHD traits at 3 years. Participants (N = 151) were infants with or without an elevated likelihood for ADHD (due to a family history of ADHD and/or ASD). A multi-method assessment protocol was used to assess infant attention and activity level at 10 months of age that included behavioural, cognitive, physiological and neural measures. Preschool ADHD traits were measured at 3 years of age using the Child Behaviour Checklist (CBCL) and the Child Behaviour Questionnaire (CBQ). Across a broad range of measures, we found no significant group differences in attention or activity level at 10 months between infants with and without a family history of ADHD or ASD. However, parent and observer ratings of infant activity level at 10 months were positively associated with later preschool ADHD traits at 3 years. Observable behavioural differences in activity level (but not attention) may be apparent from infancy in children who later develop elevated preschool ADHD traits.
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23
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Zivan M, Morag I, Yarmolovsky J, Geva R. Hyper-Reactivity to Salience Limits Social Interaction Among Infants Born Pre-term and Infant Siblings of Children With ASD. Front Psychiatry 2021; 12:646838. [PMID: 34054606 PMCID: PMC8160104 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyt.2021.646838] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/05/2021] [Accepted: 04/12/2021] [Indexed: 12/13/2022] Open
Abstract
The ability to engage attention with selected stimuli is essential for infants to explore the world and process information relating to their surroundings. There are two main populations with a higher risk to develop attentional and social deficits whose deficits may arise from difficulties in regulating attention to salient cues: (1) siblings of children diagnosed with Autism; and (2) infants who were born pre-term. This study investigated infants' (N = 97) attention-engagement and pupil-dilation (PD) at 9 months of age, using a gaze-contingent paradigm and a structured social interaction. Specifically, we explored attention to stimuli with simple salient features (e.g., clear defined shapes, colors, and motions) vs. more complex non-social cues (amorphous shapes, colors, and motions) and social interaction in typically developing infants (TD, N = 25) and among two groups of infants at-risk to develop social difficulties (pre-terms, N = 56; siblings of children with Autism, N = 16). Findings show that the two risk groups preferred stimuli with simple features (F = 11.306, p < 0.001), accompanied by increased PD (F = 6.6, p < 0.001). Specifically, pre-term infants showed increased PD toward simple vs. complex stimuli (p < 0.001), while siblings showed a pervasive hyper-arousal to both simple and complex stimuli. Infants in the TD group preferred complex stimuli with no change in PD. Finally, the preference for the simple stimulus mediated the relationship between increased risk for social difficulties and decreased engagement duration in face-to-face interaction with the experimenter. Results suggest that activation of the attention-salience network shapes social abilities at infancy. Further, hyper-reactivity to salient stimuli limits social interaction among infants born pre-term and siblings of children with ASD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Michal Zivan
- The Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Iris Morag
- Assaf Harofeh Medical Center, Zerifin, Israel.,Sackler School of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, Tel Aviv, Israel
| | - Jessica Yarmolovsky
- The Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel.,The Department of Psychology, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
| | - Ronny Geva
- The Gonda Multidisciplinary Brain Research Center, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel.,The Department of Psychology, Bar Ilan University, Ramat Gan, Israel
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24
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Bayet L, Perdue KL, Behrendt HF, Richards JE, Westerlund A, Cataldo JK, Nelson CA. Neural responses to happy, fearful and angry faces of varying identities in 5- and 7-month-old infants. Dev Cogn Neurosci 2020; 47:100882. [PMID: 33246304 PMCID: PMC7695867 DOI: 10.1016/j.dcn.2020.100882] [Citation(s) in RCA: 6] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/04/2020] [Revised: 10/19/2020] [Accepted: 11/03/2020] [Indexed: 11/30/2022] Open
Abstract
fNIRS and looking responses to emotional faces were measured in 5- and 7-month-olds. Emotional faces had varying identities within happy, angry, and fearful blocks. Temporo-parietal and frontal activations were observed, particularly to happy faces. Infants looked longer to the mouth region of angry faces. No difference in behavior or neural activity observed between 5- and 7-month-olds.
The processing of facial emotion is an important social skill that develops throughout infancy and early childhood. Here we investigate the neural underpinnings of the ability to process facial emotion across changes in facial identity in cross-sectional groups of 5- and 7-month-old infants. We simultaneously measured neural metabolic, behavioral, and autonomic responses to happy, fearful, and angry faces of different female models using functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS), eye-tracking, and heart rate measures. We observed significant neural activation to these facial emotions in a distributed set of frontal and temporal brain regions, and longer looking to the mouth region of angry faces compared to happy and fearful faces. No differences in looking behavior or neural activations were observed between 5- and 7-month-olds, although several exploratory, age-independent associations between neural activations and looking behavior were noted. Overall, these findings suggest more developmental stability than previously thought in responses to emotional facial expressions of varying identities between 5- and 7-months of age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Laurie Bayet
- Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Katherine L Perdue
- Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA
| | - Hannah F Behrendt
- Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Child Neuropsychology Section, Department of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry, Psychosomatics and Psychotherapy, University Hospital RWTH Aachen, Aachen, Germany
| | | | | | | | - Charles A Nelson
- Boston Children's Hospital, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA, USA; Harvard Graduate School of Education, Cambridge, MA, USA.
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25
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Maylott SE, Paukner A, Ahn YA, Simpson EA. Human and monkey infant attention to dynamic social and nonsocial stimuli. Dev Psychobiol 2020; 62:841-857. [PMID: 32424813 PMCID: PMC7944642 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21979] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/23/2019] [Revised: 03/23/2020] [Accepted: 03/31/2020] [Indexed: 12/14/2022]
Abstract
The present study explored behavioral norms for infant social attention in typically developing human and nonhuman primate infants. We examined the normative development of attention to dynamic social and nonsocial stimuli longitudinally in macaques (Macaca mulatta) at 1, 3, and 5 months of age (N = 75) and humans at 2, 4, 6, 8, and 13 months of age (N = 69) using eye tracking. All infants viewed concurrently played silent videos-one social video and one nonsocial video. Both macaque and human infants were faster to look to the social than the nonsocial stimulus, and both species grew faster to orient to the social stimulus with age. Further, macaque infants' social attention increased linearly from 1 to 5 months. In contrast, human infants displayed a nonlinear pattern of social interest, with initially greater attention to the social stimulus, followed by a period of greater interest in the nonsocial stimulus, and then a rise in social interest from 6 to 13 months. Overall, human infants looked longer than macaque infants, suggesting humans have more sustained attention in the first year of life. These findings highlight potential species similarities and differences, and reflect a first step in establishing baseline patterns of early social attention development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah E Maylott
- Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA
| | - Annika Paukner
- Department of Psychology, Nottingham Trent University, Nottingham, UK
| | - Yeojin A Ahn
- Department of Psychology, University of Miami, Coral Gables, FL, USA
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26
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Martins M, Costa A, Costa MJ, Marinho DA, Barbosa TM. Interactional Response During Infants' Aquatic Sessions. Sports Med Int Open 2020; 4:E67-E72. [PMID: 32782924 PMCID: PMC7413845 DOI: 10.1055/a-1201-4522] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/11/2019] [Accepted: 06/15/2020] [Indexed: 11/25/2022] Open
Abstract
The aim of study was to assess infants’ behaviour during routine swimming
sessions using a naturalistic observation method. The study sample included 14
infants (13.7±7.5 months old) with previous aquatic experience. The
frequency of occurrences per unit of time (session) in the different dimensions
– infant’s motor behaviour and social-affective interaction
– was registered over the course of two sessions by two independent
experts. The behaviours most frequently observed were accompanied displacement
(61.1%) and interaction with others (41.6%). Submersions or
jumps represented only 8.4% of the session. Implementing a child-centred
methodology leads to positive behaviours during this type of sessions,
contributing to the child’s healthy development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marta Martins
- Sport Sciences, Polytechnic Institute of Santarém Sport Sciences School of Rio Maior, Rio Maior, Portugal.,Life Quality Research Centre, CIEQV, Santarem, Portugal
| | - Aldo Costa
- Sports Science Department, UBI, Covilha, Portugal.,Research Centre in Sports, Health and Human Development, CIDESD, Vila Real, Portugal
| | - Mario J Costa
- Research Centre in Sports, Health and Human Development, CIDESD, Vila Real, Portugal.,Departement of Sport Sciences, Bragança, Polytechnic Institute of Bragança, Portugal
| | - Daniel A Marinho
- Sports Science Department, UBI, Covilha, Portugal.,Research Centre in Sports, Health and Human Development, CIDESD, Vila Real, Portugal
| | - Tiago M Barbosa
- Physical Education & Sports Science Academic Group, Singapore, National Institute of Education, Nanyang Technological University, Singapore.,Polytechninc Institute of Braganca, Portugal
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27
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McFayden TC, Panneton RK, Bruce M, Taylor C. Exploring priming effects of social and non-social attention getters on older infants' preferences for infant-directed speech. Infant Behav Dev 2020; 59:101431. [PMID: 32142952 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2020.101431] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2019] [Revised: 02/24/2020] [Accepted: 02/26/2020] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
Abstract
In infant research, various auditory/visual events are often used as attention getters to orient infants to a screen and alert them to upcoming information for their detection, discrimination, and/or recognition. Importantly, the influence of attention-getters on infants' performance has rarely been systematically evaluated, even though these attention cues could be affecting subsequent information processing. This study investigated whether specific attention-getters could prime infants' preferences for infant-directed speech (IDS) compared to adult-directed speech (ADS). Both a non-social and a social prime were chosen with the prediction that the social prime would strengthen infants' attention to IDS on a subsequent trial, but the non-social prime would have no differential effect on subsequent attention to either speech type. A total of 20 12- to 18-month old infants were presented with either a nonsocial (rotating form + chimes) or social (smiling female + voice) prime in an infant-controlled, speech preference procedure with both IDS and ADS speech types. Given previous research, we predicted that infants would show significantly more attention on trials during which looking produced IDS, but that this preference would be significantly augmented for infants in the condition receiving a social attention-getter before each trial. Results did not bear out this prediction, although we found a consistent, robust preference for IDS. The results will be discussed in terms of why these attention getters did not affect subsequent processing of two very different speech types, and what future modifications may be necessary in order to examine roles of attention getters in affecting experimental outcomes in infancy research. A secondary benefit of the findings is that we empirically established a growing preference for IDS in infants as old as 18-months of age.
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Affiliation(s)
- Tyler C McFayden
- Virginia Tech, 460 Turner St NW Suite 207, Blacksburg, 24060, United States.
| | - Robin K Panneton
- Virginia Tech, 460 Turner St NW Suite 207, Blacksburg, 24060, United States
| | - Madeleine Bruce
- Virginia Tech, 460 Turner St NW Suite 207, Blacksburg, 24060, United States
| | - Caroline Taylor
- Virginia Tech, 460 Turner St NW Suite 207, Blacksburg, 24060, United States
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28
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Camerota M, Gueron-Sela N, Grimes M, Propper CB. Longitudinal links between maternal factors and infant cognition: Moderation by infant sleep. INFANCY 2020; 25:128-150. [PMID: 32749038 PMCID: PMC9210355 DOI: 10.1111/infa.12321] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/01/2019] [Revised: 10/21/2019] [Accepted: 12/08/2019] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
The current study examined the moderating role of infant sleep in the link between maternal factors (i.e., maternal education, depressive symptoms, sleep disturbance) and infant cognition. Data come from 95 African American parent-child dyads. At 3 months of age, infant sleep was objectively measured using videosomnography and actigraphy, from which measures of sleep regulation and consolidation were calculated. Mothers also self-reported their level of education, depressive symptoms, and sleep quality. At 6 months of age, infants completed cognitive assessments, including a measure of general cognitive ability and observed attention behavior. Findings revealed that infant sleep quality interacted with maternal education and sleep disturbances to predict cognition. Specifically, the link between maternal education and infants' attention behavior was significant and positive for infants with better regulated sleep, but not for infants with poorly regulated sleep. Similarly, the link between maternal sleep disturbance and infant cognition depended on infant sleep quality. For infants with poorer sleep consolidation, increased maternal sleep disturbance predicted poorer infant general cognitive ability. For infants with better sleep consolidation, maternal sleep disturbance was positively related to both general cognitive ability and attention behavior. These findings suggest that infant sleep quality moderates the impact of environmental factors on cognitive functioning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marie Camerota
- Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Noa Gueron-Sela
- Department of Psychology, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
- Zlotowski Center for Neuroscience, Ben-Gurion University of the Negev, Beer-Sheva, Israel
| | - Melissa Grimes
- Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
- Department of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of North Carolina Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
| | - Cathi B. Propper
- Frank Porter Graham Child Development Institute, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Chapel Hill, NC, USA
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29
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Hendry A, Johnson MH, Holmboe K. Early Development of Visual Attention: Change, Stability, and Longitudinal Associations. ACTA ACUST UNITED AC 2019. [DOI: 10.1146/annurev-devpsych-121318-085114] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
Visual attention is a basic mechanism of information gathering and environment selection and consequently plays a fundamental role in influencing developmental trajectories. Here, we highlight evidence for predictive associations from early visual attention to emotion regulation, executive function, language and broader cognitive ability, mathematics and literacy skills, and neurodevelopmental conditions. Development of visual attention is also multifaceted and nonlinear. In daily life, core functions such as orienting, selective filtering, and processing of visual inputs are intertwined and influenced by many other cognitive components. Furthermore, the demands of an attention task vary according to the experience, motivation, and cognitive and physical constraints of participants, while the mechanisms underlying performance may change with development. Thus, markers of attention may need to be interpreted differently across development and between populations. We summarize research that has combined multiple measurements and techniques to further our understanding of visual attention development and highlight possibilities for the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Hendry
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, United Kingdom;,
| | - Mark H. Johnson
- Department of Psychology, University of Cambridge, Cambridge CB2 3EB, United Kingdom
| | - Karla Holmboe
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford OX2 6GG, United Kingdom;,
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Wang Q, Zhu GP, Yi L, Cui XX, Wang H, Wei RY, Hu BL. A Review of Functional Near-Infrared Spectroscopy Studies of Motor and Cognitive Function in Preterm Infants. Neurosci Bull 2019; 36:321-329. [PMID: 31713716 DOI: 10.1007/s12264-019-00441-1] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/29/2019] [Accepted: 07/23/2019] [Indexed: 11/29/2022] Open
Abstract
Preterm infants are vulnerable to brain injuries, and have a greater chance of experiencing neurodevelopmental disorders throughout development. Early screening for motor and cognitive functions is critical to assessing the developmental trajectory in preterm infants, especially those who may have motor or cognitive deficits. The brain imaging technology functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a portable and low-cost method of assessing cerebral hemodynamics, making it suitable for large-scale use even in remote and underdeveloped areas. In this article, we review peer-reviewed, scientific fNIRS studies of motor performance, speech perception, and facial recognition in preterm infants. fNIRS provides a link between hemodynamic activity and the development of brain functions in preterm infants. Research using fNIRS has shown different patterns of hemoglobin change during some behavioral tasks in early infancy. fNIRS helps to promote our understanding of the developmental mechanisms of brain function in preterm infants when performing motor or cognitive tasks in a less-restricted environment.
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Affiliation(s)
- Quan Wang
- Key Laboratory of Spectral Imaging Technology, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China.
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Spectroscopy of Xi'an, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China.
- Child Study Center, Yale School of Medicine, Yale University, New Haven, CT, 06520, USA.
| | - Guang-Pu Zhu
- Key Laboratory of Spectral Imaging Technology, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Spectroscopy of Xi'an, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China
| | - Li Yi
- School of Psychological and Cognitive Sciences and Beijing Key Laboratory of Behavior and Mental Health, Peking University, Beijing, 100871, China
| | - Xin-Xin Cui
- Key Laboratory of Spectral Imaging Technology, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Spectroscopy of Xi'an, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China
| | - Hui Wang
- Key Laboratory of Spectral Imaging Technology, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China
- University of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, China
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Spectroscopy of Xi'an, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China
| | - Ru-Yi Wei
- Key Laboratory of Spectral Imaging Technology, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China
| | - Bing-Liang Hu
- Key Laboratory of Biomedical Spectroscopy of Xi'an, Xi'an Institute of Optics and Precision Mechanics of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xi'an, 710119, China.
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31
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McFarland DH, Fortin AJ, Polka L. Physiological measures of mother-infant interactional synchrony. Dev Psychobiol 2019; 62:50-61. [PMID: 31493313 DOI: 10.1002/dev.21913] [Citation(s) in RCA: 14] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/10/2019] [Revised: 07/20/2019] [Accepted: 07/27/2019] [Indexed: 11/10/2022]
Abstract
Mother-infant interactional synchrony has been hypothesized to be crucial for the development of many key neurodevelopmental behaviors in infants, including speech and language. Assessing synchrony is challenging because many interactive behaviors may be subtlety, if at all, observable in overt behaviors. Physiological measures, therefore, may provide valuable physiological/biological markers of mother-infant synchrony. We have developed a multilevel measurement platform to assess physiological synchrony, attention, and vocal congruency during dynamic face-to-face mother-infant interactions. The present investigation was designed to provide preliminary data on its application in a group of 10 mother-infant dyads (20 subjects) ranging in age from 7 to 8.5 months at the time of the experimentation. Respiratory kinematics, heart rate, and vocalization were recorded simultaneously from mothers and infants during nonstructured, face-to-face interactions. Novel statistical methods were used to identify reliable moments of synchrony from cross-correlated, mother-infant respiration and to tag infant attention from heart rate deceleration. Results revealed that attention, vocal contingency, and respiratory synchrony are temporally clustered within the dyad interaction. This temporal alignment is consistent with the notion that biological synchrony provides a supportive platform for infant attention and mother-infant contingent vocalization.
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Affiliation(s)
- David H McFarland
- École d'orthophonie et d'audiologie, Faculté de médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada.,School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada.,Centre for Research on Brain, Language & Music, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Annie Joëlle Fortin
- École d'orthophonie et d'audiologie, Faculté de médecine, Université de Montréal, Montréal, Québec, Canada
| | - Linda Polka
- School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, Faculty of Medicine, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada.,Centre for Research on Brain, Language & Music, McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada
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Brandes-Aitken A, Braren S, Swingler M, Voegtline K, Blair C. Sustained attention in infancy: A foundation for the development of multiple aspects of self-regulation for children in poverty. J Exp Child Psychol 2019; 184:192-209. [PMID: 31039447 PMCID: PMC6528818 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2019.04.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 23] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/11/2018] [Revised: 04/09/2019] [Accepted: 04/09/2019] [Indexed: 12/17/2022]
Abstract
There are many avenues by which early life poverty relates to the development of school readiness. Few studies, however, have examined the extent to which sustained attention, a central component of self-regulation in infancy, mediates relations between poverty-related risk and cognitive and emotional self-regulation at school entry. To investigate longitudinal relations among poverty-related risk, sustained attention in infancy, and self-regulation prior to school entry, we analyzed data from the Family Life Project, a large prospective longitudinal sample (N = 1292) of children and their primary caregivers in predominantly low-income and nonurban communities. We used structural equation modeling to assess the extent to which a latent variable of infant sustained attention, measured in a naturalistic setting, mediated the associations between cumulative poverty-related risk and three domains of self-regulation. We constructed a latent variable of infant sustained attention composed of a measure of global sustained attention and a task-based sustained attention measure at 7 and 15 months of age. Results indicated that infant sustained attention was negatively associated with poverty-related risk and positively associated with a direct assessment of executive function abilities and teacher-reported effortful control and emotion regulation in pre-kindergarten. Mediation analysis indicated that the association between poverty-related risk and each self-regulation outcome was partially mediated by infant attention. These results provide support for a developmental model of self-regulation whereby attentional abilities in infancy act as a mechanism linking the effects of early-life socioeconomic adversity with multiple aspects of self-regulation in early childhood.
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Affiliation(s)
| | - Stephen Braren
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
| | - Margaret Swingler
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
| | - Kristin Voegtline
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
| | - Clancy Blair
- Department of Applied Psychology, New York University, New York, NY 10012, USA
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33
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Reynolds GD, Richards JE. Infant Visual Attention and Stimulus Repetition Effects on Object Recognition. Child Dev 2019; 90:1027-1042. [PMID: 29053180 PMCID: PMC5910295 DOI: 10.1111/cdev.12982] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.6] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
This study examined behavioral, heart rate (HR), and event-related potential (ERP) correlates of attention and recognition memory for 4.5-, 6-, and 7.5-month-old infants (N = 45) during stimulus encoding. Attention was utilized as an independent variable using HR measures. The Nc ERP component associated with attention and the late slow wave (LSW) associated with recognition memory were analyzed. The 7.5-month-olds demonstrated a significant reduction in Nc amplitude with stimulus repetition. This reduction in Nc was not found for younger infants. Additionally, infants only demonstrated differential LSW amplitude based on stimulus type on attentive trials as defined by HR changes. These findings indicate that from 4.5 to 7.5 months, infants' attentional engagement is influenced by an increasingly broader range of stimulus characteristics.
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Abstract
In the last decade, advances in neuroimaging technologies have given rise to a large number of research studies that investigate the neural underpinnings of executive function (EF). EF has long been associated with the prefrontal cortex (PFC) and involves both a unified, general element, as well as the distinct, separable elements of working memory, inhibitory control and set shifting. We will highlight the value of utilising advances in neuroimaging techniques to uncover answers to some of the most pressing questions in the field of early EF development. First, this review will explore the development and neural substrates of each element of EF. Second, the structural, anatomical and biochemical changes that occur in the PFC during infancy and throughout childhood will be examined, in order to address the importance of these changes for the development of EF. Third, the importance of connectivity between regions of the PFC and other brain areas in EF development is reviewed. Finally, throughout this review more recent developments in neuroimaging techniques will be addressed, alongside the implications for further elucidating the neural substrates of early EF development in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Abigail Fiske
- School of Psychology, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
| | - Karla Holmboe
- Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Oxford, Oxford, United Kingdom
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35
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Toddlers with Autism Spectrum Disorder Can Use Language to Update Their Expectations About the World. J Autism Dev Disord 2019; 49:429-440. [PMID: 30136111 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-018-3706-7] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
This study examined if two-year-olds with ASD can update mental representations on the basis of verbal input. In an eye-tracking study, toddlers with ASD and typically-developing nonverbal age-matched controls were exposed to visual or verbal information about a change in a recently encoded scene, followed by an outcome that was either congruent or incongruent with that information. Findings revealed that both groups looked longer at incongruent outcomes, regardless of information modality, and despite the fact that toddlers with ASD had significantly lower measured verbal abilities than TD toddlers. This demonstrates that, although there is heterogeneity on the individual level, young toddlers with ASD can succeed in updating their mental representations on the basis of verbal input in a low-demand task.
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36
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Martinec Nováková L, Havlíček J. Time, Age, Gender, and Test Practice Effects on Children’s Olfactory Performance: a Two-Year Longitudinal Study. CHEMOSENS PERCEPT 2019. [DOI: 10.1007/s12078-019-09260-0] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/29/2022]
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37
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Curtindale LM, Bahrick LE, Lickliter R, Colombo J. Effects of multimodal synchrony on infant attention and heart rate during events with social and nonsocial stimuli. J Exp Child Psychol 2019; 178:283-294. [PMID: 30445204 PMCID: PMC6980371 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2018.10.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 17] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.4] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/23/2018] [Revised: 09/16/2018] [Accepted: 10/16/2018] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
Attention is a state of readiness or alertness, associated with behavioral and psychophysiological responses, that facilitates learning and memory. Multisensory and dynamic events have been shown to elicit more attention and produce greater sustained attention in infants than auditory or visual events alone. Such redundant and often temporally synchronous information guides selectivity and facilitates perception, learning, and memory of properties of events specified by redundancy. In addition, events involving faces or other social stimuli provide an extraordinary amount of redundant information that attracts and sustains attention. In the current study, 4- and 8-month-old infants were shown 2-min multimodal videos featuring social or nonsocial stimuli to determine the relative roles of synchrony and stimulus category in inducing attention. Behavioral measures included average looking time and peak look duration, and convergent measurement of heart rate (HR) allowed for the calculation of HR-defined phases of attention: Orienting (OR), sustained attention (SA), and attention termination (AT). The synchronous condition produced an earlier onset of SA (less time in OR) and a deeper state of SA than the asynchronous condition. Social stimuli attracted and held attention (longer duration of peak looks and lower HR than nonsocial stimuli). Effects of synchrony and the social nature of stimuli were additive, suggesting independence of their influence on attention. These findings are the first to demonstrate different HR-defined phases of attention as a function of intersensory redundancy, suggesting greater salience and deeper processing of naturalistic synchronous audiovisual events compared with asynchronous ones.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lori M Curtindale
- Department of Psychology, East Carolina University, Greenville, NC 27858, USA.
| | - Lorraine E Bahrick
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - Robert Lickliter
- Department of Psychology, Florida International University, Miami, FL 33199, USA
| | - John Colombo
- Department of Psychology, University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS 66045, USA
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Bahrick LE, Todd JT, Soska KC. The Multisensory Attention Assessment Protocol (MAAP): Characterizing individual differences in multisensory attention skills in infants and children and relations with language and cognition. Dev Psychol 2018; 54:2207-2225. [PMID: 30359058 PMCID: PMC6263835 DOI: 10.1037/dev0000594] [Citation(s) in RCA: 45] [Impact Index Per Article: 7.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/08/2022]
Abstract
Multisensory attention skills provide a crucial foundation for early cognitive, social, and language development, yet there are no fine-grained, individual difference measures of these skills appropriate for preverbal children. The Multisensory Attention Assessment Protocol (MAAP) fills this need. In a single video-based protocol requiring no language skills, the MAAP assesses individual differences in three fundamental building blocks of attention to multisensory events-the duration of attention maintenance, the accuracy of intersensory (audiovisual) matching, and the speed of shifting-for both social and nonsocial events, in the context of high and low competing visual stimulation. In Experiment 1, 2- to 5-year-old children (N = 36) received the MAAP and assessments of language and cognitive functioning. In Experiment 2 the procedure was streamlined and presented to 12-month-olds (N = 48). Both infants and children showed high levels of attention maintenance to social and nonsocial events, impaired attention maintenance and speed of shifting when competing stimulation was high, and significant intersensory matching. Children showed longer maintenance, faster shifting, and less impairment from competing stimulation than infants. In 2- to 5-year-old children, duration and accuracy were intercorrelated, showed increases with age, and predicted cognitive and language functioning. The MAAP opens the door to assessing developmental pathways between early attention patterns to audiovisual events and language, cognitive, and social development. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2018 APA, all rights reserved).
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Social visual stimuli increase infants suck response: A preliminary study. PLoS One 2018; 13:e0207230. [PMID: 30412610 PMCID: PMC6226186 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0207230] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/30/2018] [Accepted: 10/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/19/2022] Open
Abstract
This study investigated whether visual stimuli (FACES vs. CARS) combined with the presence of maternal scent can influence suck patterning in healthy infants. Fifteen healthy full-term infants (six months and younger) were exposed to their mother’s scent during a visual preference paradigm consisting of FACES vs. CARS stimuli while sucking on a custom research pacifier. Infants looked significantly longer to the FACES compared to CARS, p = .041. Repeated Measures ANOVA revealed a significant main effect for non-nutritive suck (NNS) bursts and visual stimuli (p = .001) with the largest differences evident between FACES and when the infant looked away from the visual stimuli (p = 0.008) as well as between FACES and CARS (p = 0.026). These preliminary findings suggest that infants have more suck attempts when looking at FACES in the presence of maternal scent thereby indicating potent links between visual preference and suck behavior.
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40
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Quinn PC, Bhatt RS. Size and orientation cue figure-ground segregation in infants. VISUAL COGNITION 2018; 26:518-529. [PMID: 31602175 PMCID: PMC6786798 DOI: 10.1080/13506285.2018.1505794] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/02/2018] [Accepted: 07/23/2018] [Indexed: 10/28/2022]
Abstract
Adult perceivers segregate figure from ground based on image cues such as small size and main axis orientation. The current study examined whether infants can use such cues to perceive figure-ground segregation. Three- to 7-month-olds were familiarized with a pie-shaped stimulus in which some pieces formed a + and other pieces formed an x. The infants were then presented with a novelty preference test pairing the + and x. The bases for the pieces forming the + or x were size and orientation (Experiment 1), size (Experiment 2), and orientation (Experiment 3). In each experiment, infants responded as if they recognized as familiar the shape specified by small size, main axis orientation, or their combination. Control conditions showed that infant performance could not be attributed to spontaneous preference. The findings suggest that infants can achieve figure-ground segregation based on some of the same cues used by adults.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paul C. Quinn
- Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences, University of Delaware, Newark, DE, USA
| | - Ramesh S. Bhatt
- Department of Psychology, University of Kentucky, Lexington, KY, USA
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41
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Dorn K, Weinert S, Falck-Ytter T. Watch and listen - A cross-cultural study of audio-visual-matching behavior in 4.5-month-old infants in German and Swedish talking faces. Infant Behav Dev 2018; 52:121-129. [PMID: 30007216 DOI: 10.1016/j.infbeh.2018.05.003] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/22/2018] [Revised: 05/11/2018] [Accepted: 05/11/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
Investigating infants' ability to match visual and auditory speech segments presented sequentially allows us to understand more about the type of information they encode in each domain, as well as their ability to relate the information. One previous study found that 4.5- month-old infants' preference for visual French or German speech depended on whether they had previously heard the respective language, suggesting a remarkable ability to encode and relate audio-visual speech cues and to use these to guide their looking behavior. However, French and German differ in their prosody, meaning that perhaps, the infants did not base their matching on phonological or phonetic cues, but on prosody patterns. The present study aimed to address this issue by tracking the eye gaze of 4.5-month-old German and Swedish infants cross-culturally in an intersensory matching procedure, comparing German and Swedish, two same-rhythm-class languages differing in phonetic and phonological attributes but not in prosody. Looking times indicated that even when distinctive prosodic cues were eliminated, 4.5- month-olds were able to extract subtle language properties and sequentially match visual and heard fluent speech. This outcome was the same for different individual speakers for the two modalities, ruling out the possibility that the infants matched speech patterns specific to one individual. This study confirms a remarkably early emerging ability of infants to match auditory and visual information. The fact that the types of information were matched despite sequential presentation demonstrates that the information is retained in short term memory, and thus goes beyond purely perceptual - here-and-now processing.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katharina Dorn
- Department of Developmental Psychology, Otto-Friedrich University, Bamberg, Germany.
| | - Sabine Weinert
- Department of Developmental Psychology, Otto-Friedrich University, Bamberg, Germany
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42
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Xie W, Mallin BM, Richards JE. Development of brain functional connectivity and its relation to infant sustained attention in the first year of life. Dev Sci 2018; 22:e12703. [PMID: 29968370 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12703] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/21/2018] [Accepted: 05/24/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
The study of brain functional connectivity is crucial to understanding the neural mechanisms underlying the improved behavioral performance and amplified ERP responses observed during infant sustained attention. Previous investigations on the development of functional brain connectivity during infancy are primarily confined to the use of functional and structural MRI techniques. The current study examined the relation between infant sustained attention and brain functional connectivity and their development during infancy with high-density EEG recordings. Fifty-nine infants were tested at 6 (N = 15), 8 (N =14), 10 (N = 17), and 12 (N = 13) months. Infant sustained attention was defined by measuring infant heart rate changes during infants' looking. Functional connectivity was estimated from the electrodes on the scalp and with reconstructed cortical source activities in brain regions. It was found that infant sustained attention was accompanied by attenuated functional connectivity in the dorsal attention and default mode networks in the alpha band. Graph theory analyses showed that there was an increase in path length and a decrease in clustering coefficient during infant sustained attention. The functional connectivity within the visual, somatosensory, dorsal attention, and ventral attention networks and graph theory measures of path length and clustering coefficient were found to increase with age. These findings suggest that infant sustained attention is accompanied by distinct patterns of brain functional connectivity. The current findings also suggest the rapid development of functional connectivity in brain networks during infancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wanze Xie
- Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Institute for Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, Massachusetts
| | | | - John E Richards
- Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina.,Institute for Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina
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43
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Holmboe K, Bonneville-Roussy A, Csibra G, Johnson MH. Longitudinal development of attention and inhibitory control during the first year of life. Dev Sci 2018; 21:e12690. [DOI: 10.1111/desc.12690] [Citation(s) in RCA: 33] [Impact Index Per Article: 5.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/24/2017] [Accepted: 04/20/2018] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Karla Holmboe
- Department of Experimental Psychology; University of Oxford; Oxford UK
| | | | - Gergely Csibra
- Cognitive Development Centre; Department of Cognitive Science; Central European University; Budapest Hungary
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck; University of London; London , UK
| | - Mark H. Johnson
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck; University of London; London , UK
- Department of Psychology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge UK
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44
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Buss AT, Ross-Sheehy S, Reynolds GD. Visual working memory in early development: a developmental cognitive neuroscience perspective. J Neurophysiol 2018; 120:1472-1483. [PMID: 29897858 DOI: 10.1152/jn.00087.2018] [Citation(s) in RCA: 13] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/22/2022] Open
Abstract
In this article, we review the literature on the development of visual working memory (VWM). We focus on two major periods of development, infancy and early childhood. First, we discuss the innovative methods that have been devised to understand how the development of selective attention and perception provide the foundation of VWM abilities. We detail the behavioral and neural data associated with the development of VWM during infancy. Next, we discuss various signatures of development in VWM during early childhood in the context of spatial and featural memory processes. We focus on the developmental transition to more adult-like VWM properties. Finally, we discuss computational frameworks that have explained the complex patterns of behavior observed in VWM tasks from infancy to adulthood and attempt to explain links between measures of infant VWM and childhood VWM.
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Affiliation(s)
- Aaron T Buss
- Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee , Knoxville, Tennessee
| | | | - Greg D Reynolds
- Department of Psychology, University of Tennessee , Knoxville, Tennessee
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45
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Xie W, Mallin BM, Richards JE. Development of infant sustained attention and its relation to EEG oscillations: an EEG and cortical source analysis study. Dev Sci 2018; 21:e12562. [PMID: 28382759 PMCID: PMC5628078 DOI: 10.1111/desc.12562] [Citation(s) in RCA: 61] [Impact Index Per Article: 10.2] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/25/2016] [Accepted: 02/06/2017] [Indexed: 01/25/2023]
Abstract
The current study examined the relation between infant sustained attention and infant EEG oscillations. Fifty-nine infants were tested at 6 (N = 15), 8 (N = 17), 10 (N = 14), and 12 (N = 13) months. Three attention phases, stimulus orienting, sustained attention, and attention termination, were defined based on infants' heart rate changes. Frequency analysis using simultaneously recorded EEG focused on infant theta (2-6 Hz), alpha (6-9 Hz), and beta (9-14 Hz) rhythms. Cortical source analysis of EEG oscillations was conducted with realistic infant MRI models. Theta synchronization was found over fontal pole, temporal, and parietal electrodes during infant sustained attention for 10 and 12 months. Alpha desynchronization was found over frontal, central and parietal electrodes during sustained attention. This alpha effect started to emerge at 10 months and became well established by 12 months. No difference was found for the beta rhythm between different attention phases. The theta synchronization effect was localized to the orbital frontal, temporal pole, and ventral temporal areas. The alpha desynchronization effect was localized to the brain regions composing the default mode network including the posterior cingulate cortex and precuneus, medial prefrontal cortex, and inferior parietal gyrus. The alpha desynchronization effect was also localized to the pre- and post-central gyri. The present study demonstrates a connection between infant sustained attention and EEG oscillatory activities.
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Affiliation(s)
- Wanze Xie
- Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina
- Institute for Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina
| | | | - John E. Richards
- Department of Psychology, University of South Carolina
- Institute for Mind and Brain, University of South Carolina
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46
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Wass SV, Clackson K, Georgieva SD, Brightman L, Nutbrown R, Leong V. Infants' visual sustained attention is higher during joint play than solo play: is this due to increased endogenous attention control or exogenous stimulus capture? Dev Sci 2018; 21:e12667. [DOI: 10.1111/desc.12667] [Citation(s) in RCA: 29] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/14/2017] [Accepted: 02/26/2018] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sam V Wass
- School of Psychology; University of East London; London UK
| | - Kaili Clackson
- Department of Psychology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge UK
| | | | - Laura Brightman
- Department of Psychology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge UK
| | | | - Victoria Leong
- Department of Psychology; University of Cambridge; Cambridge UK
- Division of Psychology; Nanyang Technological University; Singapore
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Perdue KL, Edwards LA, Tager-Flusberg H, Nelson CA. Differing Developmental Trajectories in Heart Rate Responses to Speech Stimuli in Infants at High and Low Risk for Autism Spectrum Disorder. J Autism Dev Disord 2018; 47:2434-2442. [PMID: 28516424 DOI: 10.1007/s10803-017-3167-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/19/2022]
Abstract
We investigated heart rate (HR) in infants at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months of age, at high (HRA) and low (LRC) familial risk for ASD, to identify potential endophenotypes of ASD risk related to attentional responses. HR was extracted from functional near-infrared spectroscopy recordings while infants listened to speech stimuli. Longitudinal analysis revealed that HRA infants and males generally had lower baseline HR than LRC infants and females. HRA infants showed decreased HR responses to early trials over development, while LRC infants showed increased responses. These findings suggest altered developmental trajectories in physiological responses to speech stimuli over the first year of life, with HRA infants showing less social orienting over time.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katherine L Perdue
- Boston Children's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, 1 Autumn St., 6th Floor, Boston, MA, 02215, USA.
| | - Laura A Edwards
- Boston Children's Hospital, 1 Autumn St., 6th Floor, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
| | | | - Charles A Nelson
- Harvard University, Boston Children's Hospital, 1 Autumn St., 6th Floor, Boston, MA, 02215, USA
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Abstract
In line with a possible role of vergence in orienting visual attention, we sought to study this eye movement in young children to provide insights on face perception. For this purpose, we measured the modulation in the angle of eye vergence in a sample of 39 children aged 6-36 months and compared it when presenting static human face images versus their scrambled version. We observed enhanced vergence responses to faces compared with scrambled images. Our data suggest a role of eye vergence in face processing.
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Hendry A, Jones EJH, Bedford R, Gliga T, Charman T, Johnson MH. Developmental change in look durations predicts later effortful control in toddlers at familial risk for ASD. J Neurodev Disord 2018; 10:3. [PMID: 29378525 PMCID: PMC5789678 DOI: 10.1186/s11689-017-9219-4] [Citation(s) in RCA: 28] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/19/2017] [Accepted: 11/21/2017] [Indexed: 01/17/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Difficulties with executive functioning (EF) are common in individuals with a range of developmental disorders, including autism spectrum disorder (ASD). Interventions that target underlying mechanisms of EF early in development could be broadly beneficial, but require infant markers of such mechanisms in order to be feasible. Prospective studies of infants at high familial risk (HR) for ASD have revealed a surprising tendency for HR toddlers to show longer epochs of attention to faces than low-risk (LR) controls. In typical development, decreases in look durations towards the end of the first year of life are driven by the development of executive attention-a foundational component of EF. Here, we test the hypothesis that prolonged attention to visual stimuli (including faces) in HR toddlers reflects early differences in the development of executive attention. METHODS In a longitudinal prospective study, we used eye-tracking to record HR and LR infants' looking behaviour to social and non-social visual stimuli at ages 9 and 15 months. At age 3 years, we assessed children with a battery of clinical research measures and collected parental report of effortful control (EC)-a temperament trait closely associated with EF and similarly contingent on executive attention. RESULTS Consistent with previous studies, we found an attenuated reduction in peak look durations to faces between 9 and 15 months for the HR group compared with the LR group, and lower EC amongst the HR-ASD group. In line with our hypothesis, change in peak look duration to faces between 9 and 15 months was negatively associated with EC at age 3. CONCLUSIONS We suggest that for HR toddlers, disruption to the early development of executive attention results in an attenuated reduction in looking time to faces. Effects may be more apparent for faces due to early biases to orient towards them; further, attention difficulties may interact with earlier emerging differences in social information processing. Our finding that prolonged attention to faces may be an early indicator of disruption to the executive attention system is of potential value in screening for infants at risk for later EF difficulties and for evaluation of intervention outcomes.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alexandra Hendry
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, UK
| | - Emily J. H. Jones
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London, UK
| | - Rachael Bedford
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, UK
| | - Teodora Gliga
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London, UK
| | - Tony Charman
- Institute of Psychiatry, Psychology & Neuroscience, King’s College London, London, UK
| | - Mark H. Johnson
- Centre for Brain and Cognitive Development, Department of Psychological Sciences, Birkbeck, University of London, Malet Street, London, UK
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Navarro MG, Braham EJ, Libertus ME. Intergenerational associations of the approximate number system in toddlers and their parents. BRITISH JOURNAL OF DEVELOPMENTAL PSYCHOLOGY 2018; 36:521-539. [PMID: 29377230 DOI: 10.1111/bjdp.12234] [Citation(s) in RCA: 9] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/01/2016] [Revised: 11/30/2017] [Indexed: 01/29/2023]
Abstract
From birth, humans are able to discriminate quantities using the approximate number system (ANS). However, previous methods have only been suitable to examine ANS functioning in infancy and older children. The goals of this study were twofold: first, to modify an existing method of assessing ANS functioning for toddlerhood; and second, to investigate individual differences in toddlers' ANS performance by examining correlations with their parents' ANS acuity. Using a preferential looking paradigm, we found that 1- to 3-year-olds (N = 46) looked significantly longer to numerically changing images compared to numerically constant ones suggesting that the paradigm is a suitable measure of ANS functioning in toddlerhood. Furthermore, we found a positive relation between toddlers' ANS performance and that of their parents (assessed using a non-symbolic number comparison task) independent of children's vocabulary or parents' perceived math ability or preference for math. These findings are consistent with a specific intergenerational transmission of the ANS. Statement of contribution What is already known on this subject? Past methods used to examine ANS functioning were only suitable for infants and older children. Little research has examined sources underlying individual difference in ANS acuity. What does this study add? We developed a preferential looking task to assess ANS functioning in toddlerhood. Individual differences in toddlers' ANS functioning are correlated with their parents' ANS acuity.
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Affiliation(s)
- Monica G Navarro
- Department of Education, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.,Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Emily J Braham
- Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
| | - Melissa E Libertus
- Learning Research and Development Center, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA.,Department of Psychology, University of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
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