The role of demonstrator familiarity and language cues on infant imitation from television

Abstract

An imitation procedure was used to investigate the impact of demonstrator familiarity and language cues on infant learning from television. Eighteen-month-old infants watched two pre-recorded videos showing an adult demonstrating a sequence of actions with two sets of stimuli. Infants' familiarity with the demonstrator and the language used during the demonstration varied as a function of experimental condition. Immediately after watching each video, infants' ability to reproduce the target actions was assessed. A highly familiar demonstrator did not enhance infants' performance. However, the addition of a narrative, developed from mothers' naturalistic description of the event, facilitated learning from an unfamiliar demonstrator. We propose that the differential effect of demonstrator familiarity and language cues may reflect the infants' ability to distinguish between important and less important aspects in a learning situation. AbstractAn imitation procedure was used to investigate the impact of demonstrator familiarity and lan-

Looking good versus doing good: Which factors take precedence when children learn about new tools?

“…To explore this question, Experiment 2 used a video of a model performing the cookie-crushing task rather than having her perform it live (for examples of children learning from video models, see Bandura, 1965;Bandura, Ross, & Ross, 1963a, 1963bMeltzoff, 1988;Seehagen & Herbert, 2010;Seehagen & Herbert, 2011). The experiment had two conditions.…”

Selective imitation in 6-month-olds: The role of the social and physical context

“…In other words, infants required a match of familiarity between the physical and social context for significant levels of imitation to occur. Previous research with older infants failed to find a significant difference in imitation from familiar and unfamiliar adults in a laboratory setting (e.g., Devouche, 2004;Seehagen & Herbert, 2010). Put differently, mothers have repeatedly demonstrated their effectiveness as teachers in an unfamiliar setting, at least with older infants.…”

“…Recently, however, research has begun to examine whether the relationship between the model and the infant may impact on learning and memory (e.g., Devouche, 2004;Ryalls, Gul, & Ryalls, 2000;Seehagen & Herbert, 2010, 2011. For example, peers have been shown to be a particularly effective model for infants who are older and have had extended regular peer contact via nursery or playgroup (Seehagen & Herbert, 2011).…”

“…A few studies have compared imitation from mothers and unfamiliar adults, and their findings suggest that there might be no general advantage in a mother demonstration compared to a stranger demonstration (e.g., Devouche, 2004;Seehagen & Herbert, 2010). It is important to note, however, that these studies focused on infants who were 8 months and older.…”

Mi̇ni̇k Seyi̇rci̇ler: Bebek Ve Küçük Çocuklarda Hareketli̇ Görüntü Algisinin Geli̇şi̇mi̇ Üzeri̇ne Bi̇r Derleme

“…Schmidt, Davis ve Anderson'ın (2007) deneyinde ise çocuklara gerçekte ya da ekranda bir yetişkin saklanan etiketin nerede olduğunu söylemiş; ancak televizyondan öğrendikleri bilgiyle etiketi bulma oranı 2 yaşındaki çocuklar arasında oldukça düşük kalmıştır. 18 aylık çocuklarla yapılan bir araştırma da ekrandan çocuklara bilgi veren kişi çocukların tanıdığı biri olsa da bu durumun değişmediğini, çocukların ekranda gördükleri kişiden aldıkları bilgiyi gerçek yaşama geçir(e)mediğini göstermiştir (Seehagen ve Herbert, 2010). 2010 yılında bu alanda en saygın bilim insanlarının bir araya gelerek en çok satış yapan ve öğretici olduğunu iddia eden videolarla yaptıkları araştırma (DeLoache ve diğerleri, 2010) 12 ve 18 aylık bebeklerin hepsinin ailelerinden, videodan öğrendiklerinden (videolar etkileşimli olsa bile) çok daha fazla öğrendiklerini açık şekilde ortaya koymuştur.…”