Boorom & Salley (2026) studied communication behaviours, caregiver-child coordinated attn & infant visual attn in 5-min free play session: shorter bouts of casual attn during play may support longer periods of turn-taking with caregivers #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
The Role of Attention in Dyadic Social Interaction With Infants and Their Caregivers
This study examined the relationship among early attention skills in infants and measures of dyadic interaction during caregiver–infant play, including interpersonal synchrony and turn-taking behavio...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 29, 2026 at 4:13 PM
Boorom & Salley (2026) studied communication behaviours, caregiver-child coordinated attn & infant visual attn in 5-min free play session: shorter bouts of casual attn during play may support longer periods of turn-taking with caregivers #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Kaletsch & Liszkowski (2026): infants' pointing frequency predicted subsequent language abilities; infants' early deictic gesture use (especially hold-out-give) is influenced by caregivers' responsiveness #Pointing #Gestures #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Does Caregivers' Responsiveness Influence the Early Development of Deictic Gestures? Longitudinal and Training Evidence in Relation to Subsequent Language Development
Infants' deictic gestures, like hold-out-give (HoG) and pointing, are early manifestations of intentional, referential communication and predict later language acquisition. But what factors predict t...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 27, 2026 at 3:46 PM
Kaletsch & Liszkowski (2026): infants' pointing frequency predicted subsequent language abilities; infants' early deictic gesture use (especially hold-out-give) is influenced by caregivers' responsiveness #Pointing #Gestures #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
A new study from the Early Life Care Institute (led by Ismair et al., 2026) shows infants are active conversational partners with dads, too — taking turns from early on. Fathers' mentalizing predicts smoother exchanges with fewer overlaps #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
doi.org
October 23, 2026 at 5:47 PM
A new study from the Early Life Care Institute (led by Ismair et al., 2026) shows infants are active conversational partners with dads, too — taking turns from early on. Fathers' mentalizing predicts smoother exchanges with fewer overlaps #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Piuze et al. (2026): Bilingual exposure was not associated with stronger inhibitory control in toddlers aged 16–24 months. However, performance improved with age, supporting the ECITT as a sensitive measure of early executive function development #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
A Test of the Cognitive Benefits of Bilingualism With the Early Childhood Inhibitory Touchscreen Task
There is some evidence suggesting that bilingual children differ from monolingual children in cognitive processing due to their exposure to a more complex environment. While several studies have supp...
doi.org
October 22, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Piuze et al. (2026): Bilingual exposure was not associated with stronger inhibitory control in toddlers aged 16–24 months. However, performance improved with age, supporting the ECITT as a sensitive measure of early executive function development #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Crying is one of infants’ earliest signals. Across 53 studies, Mannarino et al. (2026) found no clear overall diff in cry pitch btwn preterm & full-term infants. Mixed findings & methodological var'y show why more consistent research is needed #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Acoustic Features, Parental Perception and Developmental Correlations of Crying in Preterm Infants: A Systematic Review and Meta‐Analysis
Infants born preterm present a higher likelihood of differences in social and emotional communication. Crying, as the earliest form of human communication, may provide valuable information about earl...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
October 7, 2026 at 3:54 PM
Crying is one of infants’ earliest signals. Across 53 studies, Mannarino et al. (2026) found no clear overall diff in cry pitch btwn preterm & full-term infants. Mixed findings & methodological var'y show why more consistent research is needed #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Padilla Colón et al. (2026) observed different joint agency episodes in Argentine Indigenous Wichí communities (multiparty, non-verbally mediated, surrounding materials) & urban Eurodescendant families (dyadic, verbally mediated, domestic toys) #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Pathways to Agency: Cross‐Cultural Evidence From Indigenous Wichi and Eurodescendant Caregiver‐Infant Interactions
This study reveals a new social interactional framework—joint agency—that permits us to better understand the early development of agency in infants being raised in culturally distinct socialization ...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 29, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Padilla Colón et al. (2026) observed different joint agency episodes in Argentine Indigenous Wichí communities (multiparty, non-verbally mediated, surrounding materials) & urban Eurodescendant families (dyadic, verbally mediated, domestic toys) #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Marin et al. (2026): 4-5mos infants looked longer when sound was temporally misaligned with collision, not when collision changed colour unexpectedly ➡️ suggests that infants may already have expectations about how collision events unfold in the physical world #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Infants Anticipate the Timing of Sounds From Dynamic Collision Events
In everyday perception, expected sounds are predicted by the movement of dynamic objects. Here, we asked if four-to five-month-old infants' understanding of physical events allows them to use motion ...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 25, 2026 at 4:02 PM
Marin et al. (2026): 4-5mos infants looked longer when sound was temporally misaligned with collision, not when collision changed colour unexpectedly ➡️ suggests that infants may already have expectations about how collision events unfold in the physical world #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
- @leilalarson.bsky.social @glall91.bsky.social et al. (2026): nutrition, psychosocial stimulation and food security in rural Bangladeshi children are important for resting state EEG, even months after exposure #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Brain Activity of Young Children in Bangladesh Is Associated With Biopsychosocial Conditions at the Individual‐, Family‐, and Household‐Level
Adversities in early life compromise children's nurturing care and impact their development. This study explored the biopsychosocial conditions associated with electroencephalography (EEG)-based bra.....
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 16, 2026 at 1:54 AM
- @leilalarson.bsky.social @glall91.bsky.social et al. (2026): nutrition, psychosocial stimulation and food security in rural Bangladeshi children are important for resting state EEG, even months after exposure #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Liu (@diliu.bsky.social) and Feigenson (2026) found that infants understand surprise as a response to information that is new to the observer. Unlike happiness, repeated surprise from the same person suggests multiple new discoveries #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Infants Understand That Surprise Is Caused by Novel Information
Infants use others' emotional expressions to make inferences about the world, for example by inferring candidate causes of their happiness or sadness. However, one emotion—surprise—is less clearly li...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 10, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Liu (@diliu.bsky.social) and Feigenson (2026) found that infants understand surprise as a response to information that is new to the observer. Unlike happiness, repeated surprise from the same person suggests multiple new discoveries #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
- @kaylinhill.bsky.social, Malachowski, @amyneedham.bsky.social, @klhumphreys.bsky.social (2026): Some babies explore objects at a fast pace. Others stay with one toy and study it. Surgency was linked to faster exploration tempo #Play #FreePlay #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Understanding Object Exploration: The Role of Temperament Early in Life
Object exploration presents infants and young children with valuable opportunities for learning across domains. What factors motivate and constrain exploratory behavior? In the present studies, we hi...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 3, 2026 at 3:42 PM
- @kaylinhill.bsky.social, Malachowski, @amyneedham.bsky.social, @klhumphreys.bsky.social (2026): Some babies explore objects at a fast pace. Others stay with one toy and study it. Surgency was linked to faster exploration tempo #Play #FreePlay #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
- @arekbialek.bsky.social @wimpouw.bsky.social @babajideowoyele.bsky.social & Filip (2026) studied the earliest inf-initiated, obj-related joint activities: throwing&passing exchange constitute paired-action seq. incl. intentional communication #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Infant‐Caregiver Object‐Related Paired Actions as Communication Development
Human communication is grounded in social interaction, and infants begin to communicate before producing their first words. In interaction with caregivers, they engage in coordinated object-related a...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
September 1, 2026 at 4:00 PM
- @arekbialek.bsky.social @wimpouw.bsky.social @babajideowoyele.bsky.social & Filip (2026) studied the earliest inf-initiated, obj-related joint activities: throwing&passing exchange constitute paired-action seq. incl. intentional communication #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Rajendra et al. (2026): 2yos use verb meaning to predict upcoming words, even when words are mispronounced. Both monolingual & bilingual toddlers integrated semantic & phonological cues, with bilinguals showing evidence of earlier integration of these cues #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
doi.org
August 27, 2026 at 3:59 PM
Rajendra et al. (2026): 2yos use verb meaning to predict upcoming words, even when words are mispronounced. Both monolingual & bilingual toddlers integrated semantic & phonological cues, with bilinguals showing evidence of earlier integration of these cues #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Wei, Surrain et al.'s (2026) findings highlight music's embodied and enactive contributions to language & motor devt, and provide novel insights into how music relates to devt in multilingual home environments #Music #Language #Multilingual #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Tuning in to Development: How Home Music Activities Relate to Language and Motor Skills in Toddlers From Monolingual and Multilingual Home Environments
Music and language are both multimodal inputs that shape early development, supporting shared attention, sensorimotor coordination, and embodied engagement. Although structured musical training has b....
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 25, 2026 at 4:01 PM
Wei, Surrain et al.'s (2026) findings highlight music's embodied and enactive contributions to language & motor devt, and provide novel insights into how music relates to devt in multilingual home environments #Music #Language #Multilingual #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Rachwani, Herzberg & Adolph (2026): flexibility in postural control is integral to learning to sit. Trunk control enables infants to adapt to novel threats to balance by maintaining stability over progressively smaller bases of support #MotorDevelopment #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Infants Adapt Sitting to a Decreasing Base of Support
As infants acquire postural control, they learn to keep balance over a progressively smaller base of support. We systematically tested the development of postural control from a floor sit, where infa...
doi.org
August 20, 2026 at 3:41 PM
Rachwani, Herzberg & Adolph (2026): flexibility in postural control is integral to learning to sit. Trunk control enables infants to adapt to novel threats to balance by maintaining stability over progressively smaller bases of support #MotorDevelopment #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Insights from Behm et al. (2026) 766 fMRI analyses of awake 1-36mo infants in Saxe/Turk-Browne Labs:
1) 12-24mos provided most usable data
2) maximise data retention: use movies designs, social stimuli & aim to collect multiple expts/session
#infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
1) 12-24mos provided most usable data
2) maximise data retention: use movies designs, social stimuli & aim to collect multiple expts/session
#infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Functional Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Awake Infants: Insights From More Than 750 Scanning Sessions
Functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI) in awake infants has the potential to reveal how the early developing brain gives rise to cognition and behavior. However, awake infant fMRI poses signifi...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 18, 2026 at 3:59 PM
Insights from Behm et al. (2026) 766 fMRI analyses of awake 1-36mo infants in Saxe/Turk-Browne Labs:
1) 12-24mos provided most usable data
2) maximise data retention: use movies designs, social stimuli & aim to collect multiple expts/session
#infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
1) 12-24mos provided most usable data
2) maximise data retention: use movies designs, social stimuli & aim to collect multiple expts/session
#infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Wei et al. (2026) show key precondition for contingent-response hypothesis (i.e., pointing elicits caregivers' responses that facilitate word learning): adults correctly interpret infants' pointing intent and provide appropriate input #pointing #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
What Is the Baby “Saying”? Adults' Interpretation of Infants' Pointing Gestures
Infants' early pointing gestures predict their language development. One hypothesized mechanism for this relation is that pointing elicits caregivers' responses that facilitate word learning. This co...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 11, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Wei et al. (2026) show key precondition for contingent-response hypothesis (i.e., pointing elicits caregivers' responses that facilitate word learning): adults correctly interpret infants' pointing intent and provide appropriate input #pointing #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
(2/2) By 20 months of age, infants integrated melody and lyrics, listening longer when either feature was modified @angeladou.bsky.social @lkcirelli.bsky.social #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Melody and Lyrics Are Integrated by Late Infancy During Recognition of Music Learned at Home
Familiar songs are often more effective than unfamiliar songs at capturing infant attention, regulating emotion, and eliciting rhythmic movements, but how infants rely on lyrics and melody to recogni...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 6, 2026 at 3:56 PM
(2/2) By 20 months of age, infants integrated melody and lyrics, listening longer when either feature was modified @angeladou.bsky.social @lkcirelli.bsky.social #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
(1/2) @angeladou.bsky.social @lkcirelli.bsky.social et al. (2026) used an online preferential listening paradigm to present infants with song conditions that were familiar, novel, or mismatched in melody and lyric familiarity #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Melody and Lyrics Are Integrated by Late Infancy During Recognition of Music Learned at Home
Familiar songs are often more effective than unfamiliar songs at capturing infant attention, regulating emotion, and eliciting rhythmic movements, but how infants rely on lyrics and melody to recogni...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
August 6, 2026 at 3:56 PM
(1/2) @angeladou.bsky.social @lkcirelli.bsky.social et al. (2026) used an online preferential listening paradigm to present infants with song conditions that were familiar, novel, or mismatched in melody and lyric familiarity #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Lai et al. (2026): Infants use single words (requests: “more”, protests: “no!”) to convey their needs. Caregivers are more likely to respond to infants’ multimodal requests & protests—words that are paired with gestures or actions—than to respond to words alone #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Infants' Multimodal Requests and Protests Elicit Responses From Mothers During Everyday Home Activities
During early vocabulary growth, infants use single words to express complete ideas. Requests (“milk”) and protests (“no!”) are fundamental ways that infants communicate their needs. However, understa...
doi.org
July 30, 2026 at 3:58 PM
Lai et al. (2026): Infants use single words (requests: “more”, protests: “no!”) to convey their needs. Caregivers are more likely to respond to infants’ multimodal requests & protests—words that are paired with gestures or actions—than to respond to words alone #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Chai et al. (2026) find a devtal shift towards less gestural & more verbal strategies for initiating interaction ➡️ show key role of gaze & obj-oriented action in early interaction & adaptability of communicative strategies in mum-child exchanges #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Developmental Shift in Multimodal Cue Usage in Early Mother‐Child Conversational Initiation
Early mother–child conversational initiation is increasingly understood as a developmentally dynamic, embodied, and socially embedded process in which caregivers and children coordinate multimodal cu...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 28, 2026 at 4:32 PM
Chai et al. (2026) find a devtal shift towards less gestural & more verbal strategies for initiating interaction ➡️ show key role of gaze & obj-oriented action in early interaction & adaptability of communicative strategies in mum-child exchanges #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
- @samanthaplate.bsky.social, Schneider, & Iverson (2026) find that infant vocal production ‘dips’ around walk onset & babies only begin coordinating vocalization with walking after 1 month of walking experience #DevPsySky #PsychSciSky #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Dips in Development: Learning to Walk Temporarily Disrupts Infant Vocalization
Infant development is a dynamic, cross-domain process. Infants acquire new skills, integrate them with well-established behaviors, and do so simultaneously. New skills can bolster development of exis...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 23, 2026 at 3:57 PM
- @samanthaplate.bsky.social, Schneider, & Iverson (2026) find that infant vocal production ‘dips’ around walk onset & babies only begin coordinating vocalization with walking after 1 month of walking experience #DevPsySky #PsychSciSky #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
How in sync are parents and babies, and can AI measure it? Sfeir et al. (2026) use theory-guided machine learning to predict dyadic synchrony, opening new doors for studying early relationships #EarlyYears #DevPsySky #PsychSciSky #MachineLearning #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Predicting Dyadic Synchrony: A Theory‐Driven Machine Learning Approach
Dyadic synchrony, defined as the coordination of emotional and behavioral signals between mother and child, is a central mechanism supporting early socioemotional development. However, predicting its...
doi.org
July 22, 2026 at 3:37 PM
How in sync are parents and babies, and can AI measure it? Sfeir et al. (2026) use theory-guided machine learning to predict dyadic synchrony, opening new doors for studying early relationships #EarlyYears #DevPsySky #PsychSciSky #MachineLearning #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
2/2 @polskaakademianauk.bsky.social @cardiffbabylab.bsky.social #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Toward Understanding Free‐Flowing Manual Object Contact: Real‐Time Interaction Between Body Position and Object Type in 9‐Month‐Olds
Infants manually contact objects differently depending on their body position and the physical properties of objects. Previous studies have examined these factors separately, in structured laboratory...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 14, 2026 at 3:52 PM
1/2 @agata-koziol.bsky.social, Laudańska, Babis, D'Souza, @tomalski.bsky.social (2026): 9mos' obj contact depends on interaction btwn body position & obj type, show'g patterns structured studies examining these factors in isolation can't predict #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Toward Understanding Free‐Flowing Manual Object Contact: Real‐Time Interaction Between Body Position and Object Type in 9‐Month‐Olds
Infants manually contact objects differently depending on their body position and the physical properties of objects. Previous studies have examined these factors separately, in structured laboratory...
onlinelibrary.wiley.com
July 14, 2026 at 3:52 PM
1/2 @agata-koziol.bsky.social, Laudańska, Babis, D'Souza, @tomalski.bsky.social (2026): 9mos' obj contact depends on interaction btwn body position & obj type, show'g patterns structured studies examining these factors in isolation can't predict #infancypapers onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/...
Testa, Todd & Bahrick (2026): mothers, though they accepted most infant bids for attention, engaged in more multimodal behaviors when redirecting than accepting infant bids for attention, and that infants responded with more joint attention and looking to toys #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...
Characterizing Mother‐Infant Dyadic Behaviors Following Infant Bids for Attention: Potential Mechanisms for Promoting Infant Attention Control and Language
Maternal responsiveness to infant bids for attention predicts a variety of child outcomes including language, social-emotional, and cognitive functioning. Recently, a study demonstrated that greater ...
doi.org
June 24, 2026 at 4:01 PM
Testa, Todd & Bahrick (2026): mothers, though they accepted most infant bids for attention, engaged in more multimodal behaviors when redirecting than accepting infant bids for attention, and that infants responded with more joint attention and looking to toys #infancypapers doi.org/10.1111/infa...