A recent study conducted by researchers at Uppsala University and Karolinska Institutet suggests that genes play a significant role in determining whether infants prefer to look at faces or non-social objects. The findings of the study, which analyzed the visual preferences of over 500 infant twins, provide evidence for a biological basis for the development of infants’ unique visual experiences and their focus on certain objects. The study has been published in the journal Nature Human Behaviour.
The way infants explore their environment with their eyes has a profound impact on their attention, perception, and learning processes. The researchers aimed to investigate the preference for faces versus non-social objects in infants at 5 months of age and explore the underlying genetic factors. Using an infant-friendly eye tracker, the team measured the gaze of the infants and found that their preference for faces could be largely attributed to genetic differences. Surprisingly, the preference was not influenced by the family environment at this early stage of life.
The study also revealed a correlation between infants’ preference for faces and their vocabulary development in their second year of life. Infants who showed a greater interest in faces during the study had a larger vocabulary later on, suggesting a connection between early visual preferences and later linguistic abilities.
The researchers highlighted the potential impact of differences in infants’ looking behavior on parent-child interactions. The preference for faces or non-social objects serves as a powerful signal to others, influencing the behavior of parents towards their children. However, it is essential to note that looking at non-social objects is not necessarily detrimental, as it also plays a crucial role in cognitive development.
The study was a part of the Babytwins Study Sweden (BATSS) research project conducted at the Karolinska Institutet Center for Neurodevelopmental Disorders. The project involved observing identical and fraternal twins using child-friendly methods, with the eye tracking experiments conducted when the infants were 5 months old. The results showed that the looking preferences of genetically identical twins were more similar compared to fraternal twins, indicating a stronger genetic influence on visual preferences.
In addition to investigating language development, the researchers also examined whether visual preferences could predict behaviors associated with autism in childhood and whether there were gender differences in facial preference. The study found no significant association between face preference in infancy and social communication abilities later in childhood. Furthermore, no gender differences were observed in the preference for faces versus non-social objects.
The study also discovered that the genes influencing facial preference were distinct from those involved in eye contact. This implies that these two fundamental social behaviors, looking at faces and focusing on eyes or mouth, have different genetic and evolutionary underpinnings. The researchers found this distinction fascinating and believe it contributes to a deeper understanding of human social development.
Overall, the study sheds light on the role of genetics in shaping infants’ visual preferences, emphasizing the importance of early experiences in cognitive and linguistic development. The findings have implications for understanding parent-child interactions and may contribute to future research on developmental disorders such as autism.
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