Infants' response to a mobile phone modified still-face paradigm: Links to maternal behaviors and beliefs regarding technoference.

Interruptions to parent-child interactions due to technology, or "technoference," have been correlated with a host of negative child developmental outcomes. Yet, the influence of technoference on parent-infant interactions and infant behaviors has received less attention and more experimental work is warranted. For this study, parent-infant dyads (n = 227) completed a modified still-face paradigm (SFP) using a mobile phone during the still-face phase. Infant responses were coded for positive and negative affect, object and parent orientation, self-comforting, and escape behaviors during the task. Results showed a robust still-face effect, with infants displaying increased negative affect, decreased positive affect, increased self-comforting, object orientation, and escape behaviors during the "still-face" or phone distracted phase of the paradigm and frequently failing to return to baseline during the reunion phase. Older infants (older than 9 months) likewise demonstrated higher levels of negative affect across all three phases of the paradigm relative to younger infants (less than 9 months). Parent reports of technoference behavior were related to increased object orientation for younger infants. Parental technoference behaviors were also linked to more escape behaviors for younger infants and decreased object orientation in older infants during the still-face portion of the SFP. Higher levels of technoference also appear to attenuate the negative emotional response of infants during still face. Results are discussed in relation to infants' increasing exposure to digital technology in the context of early relationships.

Parent-child joint media engagement in infancy.

Early conversations are an important source in shaping children's cognitive and emotional development, and it is vital to understand how parents use media as a platform to engage in conversations with their young children and what might predict the quality of these interactions. Thus, in the current study we explored the nature of parent-child discourse while engaging in media (i.e., joint media engagement) with infants, and how parent (empathic concern and responsiveness) and child (negative emotionality and regulatory capacity) variables might be associated with the quality of engagement. The current study consisted of 269 infants (50% female, Mage  = 17.09 months, SD = 3.93; 59% White) and their primary caregiver (98% mothers) who engaged in a variety of in-home tasks and parental questionnaires. Results established three meaningful codes for both parent and child that assessed positive and negative joint media engagement. Further, results suggested that parental empathic concern was associated with positive parent and child media engagement, while child negative emotionality was associated with lower levels of distraction. Discussion focuses on the importance of studying parent-child discourse in the context of joint media engagement and recommends limiting media exposure before 18 months of age.