Show simple item record

dc.contributor.authorErlich, N.
dc.contributor.authorLipp, Ottmar
dc.contributor.authorSlaughter, V.
dc.date.accessioned2017-01-30T11:21:06Z
dc.date.available2017-01-30T11:21:06Z
dc.date.created2014-02-26T20:00:31Z
dc.date.issued2013
dc.identifier.citationErlich, Nicole and Lipp, Ottmar V. and Slaughter, Virginia. 2013. Of hissing snakes and angry voices: human infants are differentially responsive to evolutionary fear-relevant sounds. Developmental Science. 16 (6): pp. 894-904.
dc.identifier.urihttp://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/10816
dc.identifier.doi10.1111/desc.12091
dc.description.abstract

Adult humans demonstrate differential processing of stimuli that were recurrent threats to safety and survival throughout evolutionary history. Recent studies suggest that differential processing of evolutionarily ancient threats occurs in human infants, leading to the proposal of an inborn mechanism for rapid identification of, and response to, evolutionary fear-relevant stimuli. The current study provides novel data in support of this proposal, showing for the first time that human infants differentially process evolutionary threats presented in the auditory modality. Sixty-one 9-month-olds listened to evolutionary fear-relevant, modern fear-relevant, and pleasant sounds, while their heart rate, startle, and visual orienting behaviours were measured. Infants demonstrated significantly enhanced heart rate deceleration, larger eye-blinks, and more visual orienting when listening to evolutionary fear-relevant sounds compared to sounds from the other two categories. These results support the proposal that human infants possess evolved mechanisms for the differential processing of a range of ancient environmental threats.

dc.publisherBlackwell Publishing Ltd
dc.titleOf hissing snakes and angry voices: human infants are differentially responsive to evolutionary fear-relevant sounds
dc.typeJournal Article
dcterms.source.volume16
dcterms.source.number6
dcterms.source.startPage894
dcterms.source.endPage904
dcterms.source.issn1363-755X
dcterms.source.titleDevelopmental Science
curtin.department
curtin.accessStatusFulltext not available


Files in this item

Thumbnail

This item appears in the following Collection(s)

Show simple item record