Get Started A Pilot Study on Object Recognition and Word Learning

Investigating the Role of Shared Attention and Interpersonal Neural Synchrony in Infant Sense-Making: A Pilot Study on Object Recognition and Word Learning

Making sense of experiences with new objects involves bottom-up and top-down processing – even at a preverbal age. Since object knowledge is still limited, caregivers play a key role in guiding infants’ attention. When caregiver and infant share a joint focus of attention, this is assumed to support early object- and word learning. Shared attention goes along with specific inter-personal neural dynamics, and is suggested to lead to enhanced neural synchronization of brain activity between two interaction partners. Interpersonal neural synchrony can be measured using electric or metabolic brain activity. Notably, studies show that neural synchrony is also heightened in caregiver-infant dyads during face-to-face interactions. However, direct evidence linking neural synchrony with shared attention and its impact on object learning in infancy is lacking. The second year of life is particularly significant, as infants begin developing symbolic representations and using top-down strategies to fast-map verbal labels onto objects. Accordingly, this project aims to fill the gap in understanding how shared attention and INS contribute to these processes. Specifically, it will address: 1) Whether shared attention between caregivers and infants is systematically linked to enhanced neural synchrony, as measured by fNIRS. 2) How shared attention and neural synchrony influence infants’ object recognition and label-object associations, as measured by infant looking time and EEG. By bridging behavioral and neurophysiological approaches, this research seeks to illuminate how social interactions scaffold early cognitive development, contributing to a deeper understanding of the neural mechanisms underlying human sense-making.

Projektlaufzeit

01.01.2025-31.12.2025

Projektleitung

Dr. Trinh Nguyen