The Retention Effects of an Adult's Emotional Displays on Infant Behavior

The goal of this investigation was to study the regulatory retention effects of an adult's emotional displays on infant behavior. In Study 1, 11- and 14-month-old infants were tested in a social-referencing-like paradigm in which a 1-hr delay was imposed between the exposure trials and the test trial. In Study 2, 11-month-olds were tested in the same paradigm, but the delay between the exposure trials and the test trial was only 3 min. Study 1 revealed that 14-month-olds, but not 11-month-olds, demonstrated behavior regulatory effects toward the target object linked to the adult's emotional displays. Study 2 indicated that 11-month-olds were affected by the emotional displays if the delay between exposure and test trials was brief enough.