Meltzoff and Moore

Question 1

When was this study carried out? (MM)

Answer 1

1977

Question 2

What was the methodology of this study? (MM)

Answer 2

Controlled observation of infants aged 2-3 weeks old

Question 3

What was the procedure of the study? (MM)

Answer 3

• 4 different stimuli were presented (3 faces + 1 hand gesture) and observed the infants’ responses
• A dummy was placed in the infant’s mouth during initial display to avoid any response
• The dummy was then removed and the child’s reaction was observed
• The video was observed by independent observers that had no knowledge of what the child had just seen
• They saw it in both real time and slow motion

Question 4

What were the behaviour categories that the observers recorded? (MM)

Answer 4

• Mouth opening: abrupt jaw drop opening their mouth across entire extent of lips
• Termination of mouth opening: return lips to closed resting position
• Tongue protrusion: clear forward thrust of tongue (tongue tip crossed back edge of lower lip)
• Termination of tongue protrusion: retraction of tongue to resting position

Question 5

How was reliability maintained in the study?

Answer 5

Each observer scored the tapes twice so that both intra-observer and inter-observer reliability could be calculated

Question 6

What were the results of the study?

Answer 6

All scores were greater than 92
They found there was an association between the infant behaviour and that of the adult model

Question 7

What was found in a later study?

Answer 7

Meltzoff and Moore (1983) demonstrated the same synchrony with infants of three days old.
The fact that infants as young as this were displaying the behaviour would appear to rule out the possibility that imitation behaviours are learned
i.e behaviour responses must be innate