Joint Action Studies

Our research on joint action explores how young children come to recognize when others are acting together and how they learn to establish cooperative joint activities with others.

In one study, we examined whether 18-month-old infants learn from and imitate others’ joint actions. More specifically, we found that observing how others play with a toy influences infants’ motivation to engage in joint play. In a further study, we are currently examining whether being imitated by a play partner also affects infants' motivation for joint play and social learning.

Using eye-tracking as a way to measure infants' expectations about others' behavior, we have been examining infants' understanding of speech and gesture from a third-party perspective. That is, we are finding out what infants expect others to do following an interaction partner's speech or gesture. For example, do they expect someone to give an item that another person requested with a palm-up gesture? Do they expect someone to respond to another's speech?

Future studies will continue to explore young children’s understanding of others’ social goals and behavior in the context of joint action and cooperation. Together, this research adds to our knowledge of the cognitive and motivational basis of early social behavior and children’s developing understanding of their social world.

Vocalization Studies

Our vocalization research focuses on the question of whether children use vocalizations in order to actively communicate with other persons, even before they have acquired language.

While recent studies have shown that young children frequently use gesture to communicate prosocially, less is known about infants' use of preverbal vocalization in communication. The voice is a very strong instrument for gaining others' attention, especially when that person is not attending. Thus, like gestures, infants' vocalizations can be studied to show that they recognize others’ intentions and beliefs, and that they have the motivation to spontaneously and appropriately help them by providing relevant information.

Social Cognition and Gesture Studies

Our social cognition and gesture research investigates how infants come to understand others as having mental states such as intentions and beliefs, as indicated by their active use of gesture in communicative situations.

For example, in recent studies, we found that infants use their communication skills (e.g. pointing) prosocially to correct a person's false belief in anticipation of her erroneous action, or to warn her of an unexpected aversive event. Such behavior reveals that infants recognize others’ prior intentions and beliefs, and have the motivation to spontaneously and appropriately help them by providing relevant information.

Other studies explore infants’ understanding of perception, attention, goals, and knowledge in relation to their communicative skills, with a particular focus on the role that social pragmatics plays in their interpretation of others’ behavior. This work is also rooted in the foundations of the philosophy of mind and behavior.

Research Facilities

Our research lab is situated in the Baby Research Center, a collaborative facility with the Radboud University Nijmegen.