Babies who learn faster are on the same wavelength as their mothers, reveals brain scan

Experts say that mothers engaged with their babies may find that their brain waves are also synchronized.

And it may help the child learn faster, say the scientists.

Interactions between a mother and her child that cause her brain activity to follow the same patterns of "neural synchrony" can be triggered by social cues such as eye contact.

A smiling or frowning mother in front of an object to express her affection or aversion also influenced the baby's brain activity and response to the toy.

The researchers found that this imitation of brain wave patterns was a good predictor of how babies were informed about their environment.

The latest discoveries could lead to a better understanding of social connection, developmental disorders, including how to improve early years learning.

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The study was discussed at the annual meeting of the Cognitive Neuroscience Society (CNS) in San Francisco.

A study of the brain activity of both babies and their mother while wearing wireless EEG headphones during active play was presented.

The researchers found that the correspondence between the neural activity of babies and that of their mother was a good indicator of how they had learned about the existence of new toys.

Social brains interact as a dance where partners walk on their steps, but act together, constantly adapting, said Dr. Thalia Wheatley of Dartmouth College, who chairs a symposium on the subject at the NSC.

During each experiment, the mother's and the child's headphones followed their brain activity while both played with toys.

Dr. Victoria Leong of the University of Cambridge, who worked on the study, said, "We found that a stronger neural synchronism predicts a higher probability of social learning. by the infant. "

Infants observed their mother, who exhibited a positive or negative emotion with regard to a toy.

These signals can be smile or frown in front of the toy and express what you like or do not like by saying aloud: "I like this" or "I do not like it" not that "about the object.

These emotional reactions have influenced their children's decision to interact with the toys and their brain activities.

The researchers found that social cues such as visual contact with the baby were associated with increased synchronism in the couple's brain structures and better learning of the baby.

However, it is still unclear exactly what leads to neural synchrony.

Dr. Leong said, "When we connect neurally with others, we open ourselves to receiving information and influencing others."

"There is no substitute for physical presence and when to connect with a baby."

Dr. Leong added that the work was of great importance for classroom learning, social bonds and developmental disorders.

"I'm interested in understanding what happens when parents or children fail to synchronize, which can occur during certain mental health and developmental difficulties, and the impact that this could have. have on learning and long-term development.

The latest discoveries are part of the new research on the social side of the brain that highlights how our brain works with others. "

Dr. Wheatley said, "There is a huge gap in knowledge about how our brains work together with other minds."

"We are this very social species and yet the field of neuroscience focuses on the brain in isolation".

Classical neuroimaging studies using MRI-like techniques tend to place isolated brain scanning machines unimportant for the real world.

Dr. Wheatley is working to develop new ways to understand brain behavior in a social context, including scenarios. that allow users of fMRI scanners to talk to each other at the same time on different sites.