Big Expressions, Little Observers!

For babies ages 6 to 14 months old.

Your baby will watch pairs of short silent videos showing a person reacting emotionally to an object (e.g., a stuffed animal, a rotten strawberry, a broken toy, or a snake). In each pair, the same emotion is expressed in either a more exaggerated or a more subtle way. We will record which expression your baby prefers to look at.

Adults often make their facial expressions bigger and more expressive when interacting with babies. What role might these exaggerated expressions play? In this study, we are interested in how babies respond to emotional expressions that vary in intensity. Specifically, we test whether more intense expressions support babies’ learning by enhancing their attention. The findings may help us better understand how everyday interactions support emotional learning during infancy.

15 minutes

After you finish the study, we will email you a $5USD or a $7CAD Amazon e-gift card within 7 days. To be eligible for the gift card, (1) your baby must be in the age range for this study and (2) we need to see that your baby is present during the study. We will send a gift card even if you do not finish the whole study or we are not able to use your data.