Contagious crying beyond the first days of life

Geangu, E.; Benga, O.; Stahl, D.; Striano, T.

Abstract

Newborns cry in response to another newborn cry and researchers agree that these are the very early signs of empathy development. Yet, little is known about the development of these affect sharing reactions in infancy, beyond the very first few days after birth. The aim of this study is to investigate the presence of contagious cry phenomenon in infancy. Infants aged 1-, 3-, 6-, and 9-month-old were presented with the sound of another infant cry vocalizations. Their emotional reactions were recorded in terms of vocal (presence of vocal distress, latency, and intensity) and facial (anger and sadness) expressions of emotions. Results show that during the presentation of a pain cry sound, 1-, 3-, 6-, and 9-months old infants manifest increased vocal and facial expressions of distress. These affect sharing reactions do not decrease with age. Both boys and girls manifest similar levels of contagious crying reactions. The results are discussed in terms of early empathy development.

Citation

Geangu, E., Benga, O., Stahl, D., & Striano, T. (2010). Contagious crying beyond the first days of life. Infant Behavior & Development, 33(3), 279-288. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infbeh.2010.03.004

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Mar 5, 2010
• Online Publication Date: Apr 1, 2010
• Publication Date: Jun 1, 2010
• Deposit Date: Jul 20, 2010
• Journal: Infant Behavior & Development
• Print ISSN: 0163-6383
• Electronic ISSN: 1879-0453
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 33
• Issue: 3
• Pages: 279-288
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.infbeh.2010.03.004
• Keywords: Emotional contagion, Empathy, Emotional prosody, Infancy.
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/1543233