Synchronization and initiative in mother-baby interaction at two and four months of age

Abstract

Introduction: Mother-baby interaction in the first months of life is mutually regulated. Babies communicate with their caregivers actively and multi-modally from gestation onwards. We aim to describe and compare the social engagement of typical babies at two and four months of age, with emphasis on communicative initiative and degree of synchrony in mother-infant interaction. Methods: A quantitative and analytical longitudinal study was conducted based on the analysis of video footage of the interaction between 25 mother-infant dyads at two and four months of age, at three different recording times: free, with a standardized toy and based on a song. The Coding Interactive Behavior (CIB) instrument was used to analyze the videos. Results: At both ages, babies were able to direct their gaze, vocalize, and initiate interaction in a multimodal manner. Statistically significant differences were found between the two ages for the variables gaze (during the song) and initiative (in the free and toy conditions) (p < 0.05), showing increased values at four months compared to two months. Discussion: Mother-baby interaction is influenced by the interaction moment and the stages of child development, with synchrony evolving over time. Better outcomes in baby and maternal behaviors, as well as in dyadic synchrony, were observed during the free interaction moment. This may be associated with the predominance of face-to-face exchanges at this age and with the greater participatory freedom experienced by both mother and baby in this situation.