Parent–infant synchrony and the construction of shared timing; physiological precursors, developmental outcomes, and risk conditions
2007/03/01 by Ruth Feldman · 1,315 citations
Health Professions · Psychology · #Child and Adolescent Psychosocial and Emotional Development #Child development #Clinical psychology #Cognitive psychology #Communication #Construct (python library) #Context (archaeology) #Developmental psychology #Developmental psychopathology #Friendship #Infant Health and Development #Interpersonal communication #Interpersonal relationship #Neuroendocrine regulation and behavior #Perspective (graphical) #Psychology #Psychopathology #Social psychology #Social relation
paper · doi:10.1111/j.1469-7610.2006.01701.x
published in Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry 48(3-4), 329-354 (Wiley)
openalex publication_date 2007/03/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/08/05
Abstract
Synchrony, a construct used across multiple fields to denote the temporal relationship between events, is applied to the study of parent-infant interactions and suggested as a model for intersubjectivity. Three types of timed relationships between the parent and child's affective behavior are assessed: concurrent, sequential, and organized in an ongoing patterned format, and the development of each is charted across the first year. Viewed as a formative experience for the maturation of the social brain, synchrony impacts the development of self-regulation, symbol use, and empathy across childhood and adolescence. Different patterns of synchrony with mother, father, and the family and across cultures describe relationship-specific modes of coordination. The capacity to engage in temporally-matched interactions is based on physiological mechanisms, in particular oscillator systems, such as the biological clock and cardiac pacemaker, and attachment-related hormones, such as oxytocin. Specific patterns of synchrony are described in a range of child-, parent- and context-related risk conditions, pointing to its ecological relevance and usefulness for the study of developmental psychopathology. A perspective that underscores the organization of discrete relational behaviors into emergent patterns and considers time a central parameter of emotion and communication systems may be useful to the study of interpersonal intimacy and its potential for personal transformation across the lifespan.
Citations
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