Baby Mind Reading

In 1890, psychologist William James famously described an infant's view of the world as "one great blooming, buzzing confusion." It was a notion that held for nearly a century: infants were simple minded creatures who merely mimicked those around them and grasped only the most basic emotions; happy, sad, angry. Science is now giving us a much different picture of what goes on inside their hearts and heads. Where were these break throughs when Sebastian was a toddler?

Did you know your baby can feel a range of complex emotions like envy and empathy? Until a baby is 3 months old, he can recognize a scrambled photograph of his mother just as quickly as a photo in which everything is in the right place. Babies as young as 4 months have the advanced powers of deduction and an ability to decipher intricate patterns. The research shows how powerful emotional well-being is to a child's future health. A baby who fails to meet certain key "emotional milestones" may have trouble learning to speak, read and, later, do well in school.

Dr. Chet Johnson, chairman of the American Academy of Pediatrics' early-childhood committee says, "Instead of just asking if they're crawling or sitting, we're asking more questions about how they share their world with their caregivers. Do they point to things? When they see a new person, how do they react? How children do on social, emotional and language skills are better predictors of success in adulthood than motor skills are."

Psychologists used to believe that emotions like jealousy were far too complex for babies to process. But compelling new evidence from researchers at Texas Tech University shows that the very young can behighly possessive, just like everyone else. In a Texas Tech lab, 8 month old Josephy McCarty plays and gurgles happily, reveling in mother Nancy's undivided attention. But when researchers pass Nancy a life-size doll, Joseph begins to look distressed. He watches his mother closely as she fusses over the doll. Becoming increasingly agitated, Joseph waves and kicks his legs in a big to win back his mother's attention, but she continues to play with the doll. That's it. No more Mr. Nice Guy. Joseph turns on the waterworks and opens his lungs, letting his mother know she belongs to him and him alone.

So what should you, as a parent, do with all this new information? First, relax. lol Just because your baby is more perceptive than you thought previously doesn't mean he is going to be damaged for life if he cries in his crib for a minute. It doesn't mean she will end up quitting school and stealing cars if she witnesses an occasional argument between her parents. A child's social, emotional and academic life begins with the earlies of conversations between parent and child; the quiet smiles you exchange with your infant. Your child is speaking to you all the time. It's just a matter of knowing how to listen.

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