title: Signs of Pretense Across Age and Scenario.
abstract: Participation in imagined worlds is a hallmark of the human species, and yet we know little about the context of its early emergence. The experiments reported here replicated and extended in 2 directions Lillard and Witherington's (2004) study of how mothers pretend to have snacks, across different ages of children (15- to 24-month-olds, Experiment 1) and to a different scenario (personal grooming, Experiment 2). Mothers' pretend behaviors changed little as infants aged, but there were some scenario differences. Most striking in this research was the consistency with which particular maternal pretend behaviors were associated with children engaging in pretense behaviors and smiling. The findings are discussed with reference to the child's emerging skills in joint attention and social referencing.
authors: Department of Psychology, University of Virginia.
authors: Angeline
authors: A
authors: Lillard
authors: Tracy
authors: T
authors: Nishida
authors: Davide
authors: D
authors: Massaro
authors: Amrisha
authors: A
authors: Vaish
authors: Lili
authors: L
authors: Ma
authors: Gerald
authors: G
authors: McRoberts