Title |
Human Infant Faces Provoke Implicit Positive Affective Responses in Parents and Non-Parents Alike
|
---|---|
Published in |
PLOS ONE, November 2013
|
DOI | 10.1371/journal.pone.0080379 |
Pubmed ID | |
Authors |
Vincenzo Paolo Senese, Simona De Falco, Marc H. Bornstein, Andrea Caria, Simona Buffolino, Paola Venuti |
Abstract |
Human infants' complete dependence on adult caregiving suggests that mechanisms associated with adult responsiveness to infant cues might be deeply embedded in the brain. Behavioural and neuroimaging research has produced converging evidence for adults' positive disposition to infant cues, but these studies have not investigated directly the valence of adults' reactions, how they are moderated by biological and social factors, and if they relate to child caregiving. This study examines implicit affective responses of 90 adults toward faces of human and non-human (cats and dogs) infants and adults. Implicit reactions were assessed with Single Category Implicit Association Tests, and reports of childrearing behaviours were assessed by the Parental Style Questionnaire. The results showed that human infant faces represent highly biologically relevant stimuli that capture attention and are implicitly associated with positive emotions. This reaction holds independent of gender and parenthood status and is associated with ideal parenting behaviors. |
X Demographics
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Philippines | 2 | 11% |
France | 1 | 5% |
United States | 1 | 5% |
United Kingdom | 1 | 5% |
Italy | 1 | 5% |
Sweden | 1 | 5% |
Unknown | 12 | 63% |
Demographic breakdown
Type | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Members of the public | 17 | 89% |
Practitioners (doctors, other healthcare professionals) | 1 | 5% |
Scientists | 1 | 5% |
Mendeley readers
Geographical breakdown
Country | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
United Kingdom | 1 | 1% |
United States | 1 | 1% |
Unknown | 72 | 97% |
Demographic breakdown
Readers by professional status | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Student > Ph. D. Student | 11 | 15% |
Student > Master | 11 | 15% |
Student > Bachelor | 11 | 15% |
Student > Doctoral Student | 7 | 9% |
Student > Postgraduate | 4 | 5% |
Other | 13 | 18% |
Unknown | 17 | 23% |
Readers by discipline | Count | As % |
---|---|---|
Psychology | 34 | 46% |
Neuroscience | 5 | 7% |
Agricultural and Biological Sciences | 3 | 4% |
Veterinary Science and Veterinary Medicine | 2 | 3% |
Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology | 2 | 3% |
Other | 8 | 11% |
Unknown | 20 | 27% |