Abstract
Touch is one of the first senses to develop and one of the earliest modalities for infant-caregiver communication. While studies have explored the benefits of infant touch in terms of physical health and growth, the effects of social touch on infant behavior are relatively unexplored. Here, we investigated the influence of neonatal handling on a variety of domains, including memory, novelty seeking, and social interest, in infant monkeys (Macaca mulatta; n = 48) from 2 to 12 weeks of age. Neonates were randomly assigned to receive extra holding, with or without accompanying face-to-face interactions. Extra-handled infants, compared to standard-reared infants, exhibited less stress-related behavior and more locomotion around a novel environment, faster approach of novel objects, better working memory, and less fear towards a novel social partner. In sum, infants who received more tactile stimulation in the neonatal period subsequently demonstrated more advanced motor, social, and cognitive skills-particularly in contexts involving exploration of novelty-in the first three months of life. These data suggest that social touch may support behavioral development, offering promising possibilities for designing future early interventions, particularly for infants who are at heightened risk for social disorders.
| Original language | English (US) |
|---|---|
| Journal | Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience |
| DOIs | |
| State | Accepted/In press - 2017 |
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Keywords
- Communication
- Development
- Maternal sensitivity
- Mother-infant
- Neonate
- Plasticity
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Cognitive Neuroscience
Cite this
Handling newborn monkeys alters later exploratory, cognitive, and social behaviors. / Simpson, Elizabeth A; Sclafani, Valentina; Paukner, Annika; Kaburu, Stefano S.K.; Suomi, Stephen J.; Ferrari, Pier F.
In: Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience, 2017.Research output: Contribution to journal › Article
}
TY - JOUR
T1 - Handling newborn monkeys alters later exploratory, cognitive, and social behaviors
AU - Simpson, Elizabeth A
AU - Sclafani, Valentina
AU - Paukner, Annika
AU - Kaburu, Stefano S.K.
AU - Suomi, Stephen J.
AU - Ferrari, Pier F.
PY - 2017
Y1 - 2017
N2 - Touch is one of the first senses to develop and one of the earliest modalities for infant-caregiver communication. While studies have explored the benefits of infant touch in terms of physical health and growth, the effects of social touch on infant behavior are relatively unexplored. Here, we investigated the influence of neonatal handling on a variety of domains, including memory, novelty seeking, and social interest, in infant monkeys (Macaca mulatta; n = 48) from 2 to 12 weeks of age. Neonates were randomly assigned to receive extra holding, with or without accompanying face-to-face interactions. Extra-handled infants, compared to standard-reared infants, exhibited less stress-related behavior and more locomotion around a novel environment, faster approach of novel objects, better working memory, and less fear towards a novel social partner. In sum, infants who received more tactile stimulation in the neonatal period subsequently demonstrated more advanced motor, social, and cognitive skills-particularly in contexts involving exploration of novelty-in the first three months of life. These data suggest that social touch may support behavioral development, offering promising possibilities for designing future early interventions, particularly for infants who are at heightened risk for social disorders.
AB - Touch is one of the first senses to develop and one of the earliest modalities for infant-caregiver communication. While studies have explored the benefits of infant touch in terms of physical health and growth, the effects of social touch on infant behavior are relatively unexplored. Here, we investigated the influence of neonatal handling on a variety of domains, including memory, novelty seeking, and social interest, in infant monkeys (Macaca mulatta; n = 48) from 2 to 12 weeks of age. Neonates were randomly assigned to receive extra holding, with or without accompanying face-to-face interactions. Extra-handled infants, compared to standard-reared infants, exhibited less stress-related behavior and more locomotion around a novel environment, faster approach of novel objects, better working memory, and less fear towards a novel social partner. In sum, infants who received more tactile stimulation in the neonatal period subsequently demonstrated more advanced motor, social, and cognitive skills-particularly in contexts involving exploration of novelty-in the first three months of life. These data suggest that social touch may support behavioral development, offering promising possibilities for designing future early interventions, particularly for infants who are at heightened risk for social disorders.
KW - Communication
KW - Development
KW - Maternal sensitivity
KW - Mother-infant
KW - Neonate
KW - Plasticity
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85028332149&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/citedby.url?scp=85028332149&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.dcn.2017.07.010
DO - 10.1016/j.dcn.2017.07.010
M3 - Article
C2 - 28844729
AN - SCOPUS:85028332149
JO - Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
JF - Developmental Cognitive Neuroscience
SN - 1878-9293
ER -