A one-year-old infant is given a large and rather frightening new toy. She first looks at her mother, notices that her mother is smiling and looking pleased, and then turns to play with the toy. What name do psychologists use for this process?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The process described in this scenario is known as social referencing. The infant is using her mother's emotional reaction to the toy as a reference point to guide her own response to the object. This is a common developmental milestone in which children begin to use social cues to make sense of and interact with their environment.

A One-Year-Old Infant Is Given a Large and Rather Frightening