The theory-theory is not supported by evidence in the everyday actions of infants and toddlers wh... more The theory-theory is not supported by evidence in the everyday actions of infants and toddlers whose lives a Theory of Mind is meant radically to transform. This paper reviews some of these challenges to the theory-theory, particularly from communication and deception. We argue that the theory’s disconnection from action is both inevitable and paradoxical. The mind–behaviour dualism upon which it is premised requires a conceptual route to knowing minds and disallows a real test of the theory through the study of action. Taking engagement seriously avoids these problems and requires that both lay people and psychologists be participants rather than observers in order to know, and indeed to create, minds.
Everyday humour and laughter can tell us about children's ability to engage with and understa... more Everyday humour and laughter can tell us about children's ability to engage with and understand others. A group of 19 pre‐school children with autism and 16 pre‐school children with Down's syndrome, matched on non‐verbal mental age, participated in a cross‐sectional study. Parental reports revealed no group differences in overall frequencies of laughter or laughter at tickling, peekaboo or slapstick. However, in the autism group, reported laughter was rare in response to events such as funny faces or socially inappropriate acts, but was common in strange or inexplicable situations. Reported responses to others‘laughter also differed: children with autism rarely attempted to join in others’ laughter and rarely attempted to re‐elicit it through acts of clowning or teasing. Analysis of videotaped interactions also showed no group differences in frequencies of child or adult laughter. However, the children with autism showed higher frequencies of unshared laughter in interactive situations and lower frequencies of attention or smiles in response to others' laughter. Humour is an affective and cultural phenomenon involving the sharing of affect, attention and convention; children with autism show problems in some simple affective and mutual as well as joint attentional and cultural aspects of humorous engagement.
How does humor relate to culture? Some argue that comedy is much more dependent on cultural frame... more How does humor relate to culture? Some argue that comedy is much more dependent on cultural frames than is tragedy, as cultures vary enormously in their appreciation of attitudes toward playfulness. Humor may be so essential to culture that it is fundamental to the process of the culture in which it is embedded.
This volume explores in depth how infants - perhaps as young as three months - develop the capaci... more This volume explores in depth how infants - perhaps as young as three months - develop the capacity to appreciate, participate in, and create humor. Engagingly written, it synthesizes theories of humor, its subtle complexities, and why it exists despite seeming to have little survival value. Chapters trace the developing skills in the child’s interactions with parents and others, the roles of verbal and nonverbal behaviors in humor, and related phenomena including absurdity, funniness, laughter, teasing, and play. These diverse perspectives offer rich insights into how the human mind learns from its environment, why humor is funny, and what humor can tell us about being human. This singular text: - Reviews theories and findings on humor and its critical role in social behavior. - Analyzes the challenges of researching humor in infants and young children. - Differentiates among concepts and contexts of humor and playfulness. - Situates humor as a social-emotional as well as cognitive experience. - Details current research on humor in atypically developing children. - Examines the role of culture in humor. Humor in Infants is an essential resource for researchers, clinicians, and graduate students in developmental psychology, infant mental health, social psychology, cognitive science, and pediatrics.
Page 203. Chapter 7 Feeling shy and showing-off: Self-conscious emotions must regulate self-aware... more Page 203. Chapter 7 Feeling shy and showing-off: Self-conscious emotions must regulate self-awareness Vasudevi Reddy This paper seeks a re-examination of the nature and development of self-conscious emotions. It argues ...
The theory-theory is not supported by evidence in the everyday actions of infants and toddlers wh... more The theory-theory is not supported by evidence in the everyday actions of infants and toddlers whose lives a Theory of Mind is meant radically to transform. This paper reviews some of these challenges to the theory-theory, particularly from communication and deception. We argue that the theory’s disconnection from action is both inevitable and paradoxical. The mind–behaviour dualism upon which it is premised requires a conceptual route to knowing minds and disallows a real test of the theory through the study of action. Taking engagement seriously avoids these problems and requires that both lay people and psychologists be participants rather than observers in order to know, and indeed to create, minds.
Everyday humour and laughter can tell us about children's ability to engage with and understa... more Everyday humour and laughter can tell us about children's ability to engage with and understand others. A group of 19 pre‐school children with autism and 16 pre‐school children with Down's syndrome, matched on non‐verbal mental age, participated in a cross‐sectional study. Parental reports revealed no group differences in overall frequencies of laughter or laughter at tickling, peekaboo or slapstick. However, in the autism group, reported laughter was rare in response to events such as funny faces or socially inappropriate acts, but was common in strange or inexplicable situations. Reported responses to others‘laughter also differed: children with autism rarely attempted to join in others’ laughter and rarely attempted to re‐elicit it through acts of clowning or teasing. Analysis of videotaped interactions also showed no group differences in frequencies of child or adult laughter. However, the children with autism showed higher frequencies of unshared laughter in interactive situations and lower frequencies of attention or smiles in response to others' laughter. Humour is an affective and cultural phenomenon involving the sharing of affect, attention and convention; children with autism show problems in some simple affective and mutual as well as joint attentional and cultural aspects of humorous engagement.
How does humor relate to culture? Some argue that comedy is much more dependent on cultural frame... more How does humor relate to culture? Some argue that comedy is much more dependent on cultural frames than is tragedy, as cultures vary enormously in their appreciation of attitudes toward playfulness. Humor may be so essential to culture that it is fundamental to the process of the culture in which it is embedded.
This volume explores in depth how infants - perhaps as young as three months - develop the capaci... more This volume explores in depth how infants - perhaps as young as three months - develop the capacity to appreciate, participate in, and create humor. Engagingly written, it synthesizes theories of humor, its subtle complexities, and why it exists despite seeming to have little survival value. Chapters trace the developing skills in the child’s interactions with parents and others, the roles of verbal and nonverbal behaviors in humor, and related phenomena including absurdity, funniness, laughter, teasing, and play. These diverse perspectives offer rich insights into how the human mind learns from its environment, why humor is funny, and what humor can tell us about being human. This singular text: - Reviews theories and findings on humor and its critical role in social behavior. - Analyzes the challenges of researching humor in infants and young children. - Differentiates among concepts and contexts of humor and playfulness. - Situates humor as a social-emotional as well as cognitive experience. - Details current research on humor in atypically developing children. - Examines the role of culture in humor. Humor in Infants is an essential resource for researchers, clinicians, and graduate students in developmental psychology, infant mental health, social psychology, cognitive science, and pediatrics.
Page 203. Chapter 7 Feeling shy and showing-off: Self-conscious emotions must regulate self-aware... more Page 203. Chapter 7 Feeling shy and showing-off: Self-conscious emotions must regulate self-awareness Vasudevi Reddy This paper seeks a re-examination of the nature and development of self-conscious emotions. It argues ...
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