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van Schaik JE, Hunnius S. Little chameleons: The development of social mimicry during early childhood. J Exp Child Psychol. 2016;147:71-81doi: 10.1016/j.jecp.2016.03.003.
van Schaik, J. E., & Hunnius, S. (2016). Little chameleons: The development of social mimicry during early childhood. Journal of experimental child psychology, 14771-81. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2016.03.003
van Schaik, Johanna E, and Hunnius, Sabine. "Little chameleons: The development of social mimicry during early childhood." Journal of experimental child psychology vol. 147 (2016): 71-81. doi: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jecp.2016.03.003
van Schaik JE, Hunnius S. Little chameleons: The development of social mimicry during early childhood. J Exp Child Psychol. 2016 Jul;147:71-81. doi: 10.1016/j.jecp.2016.03.003. Epub 2016 Apr 06. PMID: 27060416.
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J Exp Child Psychol. 2016 Jul;147:71-81. doi: 10.1016/j.jecp.2016.03.003. Epub 2016 Apr 06.

Little chameleons: The development of social mimicry during early childhood.

Journal of experimental child psychology

Johanna E van Schaik, Sabine Hunnius

Affiliations

  1. Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, 6500 HE Nijmegen, The Netherlands. Electronic address: [email protected].
  2. Donders Institute for Brain, Cognition, and Behaviour, Radboud University Nijmegen, 6500 HE Nijmegen, The Netherlands.

PMID: 27060416 DOI: 10.1016/j.jecp.2016.03.003

Abstract

Adults use behavioral mimicry to blend in with (or stand out from) their social environment. Adopting another's mannerisms and behaviors, or "mimicking", communicates liking and similarity between interaction partners and has been shown to serve as an implicit affiliation mechanism. Given this important social function, it is surprising that so little is known about the development of mimicry. In two studies, we investigated mimicry and its social sensitivity during early childhood. Children of 4 to 6years (Study 1) and 3years (Study 2) first chose a novel group based on their color preference. Following a baseline phase, children observed videos of in-group and out-group models performing behaviors that are typically mimicked in adults. Importantly, the children received neither instructions nor encouragement to copy the behaviors. Both 3-year-olds and 4- to 6-year-olds displayed behavioral mimicry. Furthermore, 4- to 6-year-olds mimicked the in-group model more than the out-group model, and this in-group bias was also evident in their explicit group preferences. Together, these studies present the first evidence for behavioral mimicry and its social sensitivity during early childhood. Placed in the context of social development, the findings provide a necessary contribution to current developmental and psychological theories on mimicry and behavior copying.

Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

Keywords: Behavioral mimicry; Early childhood; Imitation; Novel groups; Social copying; Social development

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