Title and Authors

Title: "Infants’ and Young Children’s Imitation of Linguistic In-Group and Out-Group
Informants" Authors: Lauren H. Howard, Annette M.E. Henderson, Cristina Carrazza,
Amanda L. Woodward Source: Child Development, 2015, 86(1), 259–275.
doi:10.1111/cdev.12299

Background
Context: The study explores how children's social learning is influenced by their ability to
select which social partners to learn from. This ability is essential for cultural learning, as it
helps children acquire cultural norms and practices by choosing informants based on social
categories such as linguistic group membership.

Knowledge Gap: While it is known that children can choose informants based on social
categories, the consistency of this preference across different ages and contexts remains
unclear. This research aims to fill this gap by examining how infants and young children
imitate actions performed by in-group (same language) versus out-group (different language)
models.

Objective
Aim: The study investigates whether children prefer to imitate actions demonstrated by
someone who speaks their native language (in-group) over someone who speaks a different
language (out-group). This preference is examined in both live and video-recorded contexts
to understand the impact of different learning environments on children's imitation behavior.

Problem
Research Question: The study addresses whether children's tendency to imitate actions is
influenced by the linguistic group membership of the model. It also explores whether this
selectivity changes with the child's developmental stage and the mode of presentation (live
or video).

Significance: Understanding the factors that influence children's social learning is important
for gaining insights into how cultural norms and practices are transmitted and acquired by
children.

Hypothesis
Prediction: The authors hypothesize that children will show a preference for imitating
actions demonstrated by in-group models, with this preference being stronger in video
contexts and among older children. This hypothesis is based on the idea that video-
mediated interactions might make it easier for children to resist out-group influence, and that
older children have more developed cognitive abilities to recognize in-group cues.

Methods
Participants: The study involved 19-month-old infants and 3-year-old children.

Experiments: Three experiments were conducted:

1. Experiment 1: 19-month-olds observed live demonstrations by in-group and out-

group models.
2. Experiment 2: 3-year-olds observed live demonstrations by in-group and out-group
models.
3. Experiment 3: Both age groups observed video-recorded demonstrations by in-
group and out-group models.

Data Collection: Children's imitation of the demonstrated actions was assessed. Eye-
tracking data were collected during video presentations to monitor their attention to the
models.

Purpose: These methods allowed the researchers to observe children's behavior in

controlled settings and measure their responses to different social cues.

Findings
1. Experiment 1: 19-month-olds did not show a preference for imitating the in-group
model in live demonstrations.
2. Experiment 2: 3-year-olds preferred imitating the in-group model in live contexts.
3. Experiment 3: Both age groups were more likely to imitate the in-group model in
video presentations.

Implication: The results indicate that the context of learning (live vs. video) and the age of
the child significantly influence the expression of in-group preferences in social learning.

Conclusion
Summary: The study concludes that children's selective imitation based on social group
membership is influenced by both age and the context of the demonstration. Younger
children may be less selective in live interactions, whereas older children and children in
video contexts show a clear preference for in-group models.

Broader Impact: These findings suggest that the development of executive function abilities
and increased social motivation contribute to the emergence of selective social learning
preferences. This has implications for understanding how cultural norms and practices are
acquired and transmitted among children.