The effect of situation familiarity on the establishment of co-references between mother and infant

The purpose of this study was to determine whether the familiarity or the novelty of play objects available during mother‐infant interaction has an effect on the mother's ability to capture and maintain the infant's attention. Twelve mother‐infant dyads with 5‐ and 9‐month‐old infants were filmed during two 5‐minute sessions with familiar or unfamiliar toys. Changes in the infant's visual orientation preceded by a maternal behaviour within a 3‐sec interval were studied. In the familiar toy situation, the infants focused more frequently on the maternal referent than with the unfamiliar toys. The mother's verbal and non‐verbal interventions were more effective at initiating and maintaining co‐reference, because the infant was more frequently in an receptive state. Conversely, when the toys were unfamiliar, the baby was often the initiator. Unfamiliar objects, which appear more attractive, may compete with the mother's attempts to gain the child's attention.