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Factors Influencing Newborns' Preference for Faces with Eye Contact
- Source :
-
Journal of Experimental Child Psychology . Dec 2006 95(4):298-308. - Publication Year :
- 2006
-
Abstract
- We investigated newborns' sensitivity to the direction of gaze of another's face by using a preferential looking technique. This study extends earlier work on a preference for faces with direct gaze in newborns. In Experiment 1, we replicate the basic finding of Farroni and colleagues that newborns prefer to look at faces with direct gaze. In Experiments 2 and 3, we establish that a preference for faces with direct gaze in newborns is present only within the context of an upright face and a straight head, suggesting that relatively primitive configuration-sensitive mechanisms may be operating. Overall, these results further the view that relatively simple perceptual biases in newborns may be an essential foundation for later social-cognitive development.
Details
- Language :
- English
- ISSN :
- 0022-0965
- Volume :
- 95
- Issue :
- 4
- Database :
- ERIC
- Journal :
- Journal of Experimental Child Psychology
- Publication Type :
- Academic Journal
- Accession number :
- EJ746256
- Document Type :
- Journal Articles<br />Reports - Evaluative
- Full Text :
- https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2006.08.001