Little Brains Big Research

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The roots of empathy

 

One Meltzoff experiment, with 18-montholds, demonstrated how babies understand other people’s intentions. The babies watched adults try to pull apart a toy that had secretly been glued shut. Given the same toy, but not glued, the babies completed the task. Those elements, Meltzoff says, are the roots of empathy.

 

“Human beings are special in the animal kingdom, because we feel empathy for one another and have a theory of mind that says we believe other people have beliefs, thoughts, intentions, emotions, desires that are like mine but not the same. The moral implications of this are profound. That person is thought to be like me. If they act like me, have feelings like me, then maybe they should be treated like I want to be treated.”

 

Parenting advice

 

So how can parents ensure their babies are making the most of their baby years? Kuhl and Meltzoff say to do what you naturally do: Talk, coo, play and cuddle with your baby in a loving way. For human beings, nurturing comes naturally.

 

“When you watch parents in relaxed settings, they do the right things,” Kuhl says. “Motherese falls off their tongues.”

 

Implications for language learning

 

Scientists are still years away from bridging baby-brain research and the classroom, Kuhl says. However research already suggests it might be more effective to teach foreign language in preschool, when children’s brains are most impressionable, than in high school, when language is traditionally taught. I-LABS hopes to fund a longitudinal study to see what factors in infancy affect learning as children grow.

 

“Scientists do research on questions that matter so they can use it when sculpting policies that will help children,” Meltzoff says. “At a certain point we get to the water’s edge and we hand off to the politicians.”

 

After that, what happens in adult society may be just as complex, but not nearly as wondrous, as the inner workings of the tiniest minds.

Vocabulary Focus

implication (n) [7impli5keiFEn] something that is not said but understood as a natural consequence of something else

profound (adj) [prE5faund] felt or experienced strongly; extreme

impressionable (adj) [im5preFEnEb(E)l] very easily influenced by people around one or by what one is told

 

Specialized Terms

coo (v) 呢喃；轻声柔语 to speak or make sounds in a soft, gentle or loving way

motherese (n) 母性语言 a pattern of speech used by parents or others when communicating with young children, particularly infants, usually consisting of simplified vocabulary, melodic pitch, and a slow or deliberate tempo

longitudinal study (n) 长期的研究 a research method in which a subject is studied over an extended period of time, usually to discern patterns or identify changes

小脑袋，大学问

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同理心的根源

梅尔佐夫对18个月大的婴儿进行的一项实验，说明了婴儿如何了解他人的意图。婴儿注意大人试着扯开一个表皮已暗的用粘胶密合的玩具，然后再拿到一个相同但未粘合的玩具时，也会跟着做。梅尔佐夫说，这些特质就是同理心的根源。   

“人类在动物王国中是独特的，因为我们对彼此有同理心，并有一个关于心智的理论，认为其它人有着和我们不相同但相似的信念、想法、意图、感情和欲望。其中的道德含义深远。我认为那个人和我相似，如果他们行为像我，感觉像我，那么也许我该用我希望被对待的方式来对待他们。”

 

育儿忠告   

那么父母如何确保他们的宝宝能充分利用幼儿时光呢？卡尔和梅尔佐夫说就照你的本能做：用充满爱意的方式和你的宝宝说话、呢喃、玩耍及搂抱。对人类而言，养育是件自然而然的事。   

卡尔说：“你若注意处在放松的环境里的父母，就会发现他们的做法正确，母性语言会脱口而出。”

 

语言学习上的含义

卡尔认为，科学家距离将婴儿智力研究衔接到课堂教育这一步尚远。不过研究已显示，相对于传统上在高中时教授外语，若在学前即教授，可能更有效果，因为此时儿童的脑子最易受到影响。I-LABS 希望资助一个长期的研究计划，以了解随着儿童成长，影响其学习的婴儿期因素为何。   

梅尔佐夫说：“科学家研究重要的问题，以便在制定有益儿童的政策时，研究结果能派上用场。我们在进行到某个阶段、即将大功告成时，却拱手交由政客完成后续工作。”   

从那之后，成人世界里发生的事情可能和婴儿小小脑袋瓜中的运作一样复杂，却远不及其神奇。