creator Lossia, Amanda Kathryn advisor Hopkins, Joyce A growing body of literature has demonstrated that infants are able to detect patterns in structured external environmental stimuli through a statistical learning mechanism. The present study examines whether statistical learning operates as a learning mechanism in social interactions as well. Prior research using an ABA experimental design demonstrated that infants modified their communicative behavior when the level of contingent caregiver feedback to infant gestures was altered (Miller & Lossia, 2013). These findings are extended in the present study by examining whether the infants developed modified expectations for caregiver feedback when the pattern of contingent feedback was altered, which might function as a possible mechanism for the changes seen in infant communicative behavior. Anticipatory looking to the caregiver was used as a measure of infants’ expectations for caregiver responsiveness. Results showed differences in anticipatory looking to the caregiver across periods. The pattern of anticipatory looking did not fully explain the changes seen in infant communicative behavior. However, the findings do suggest that infants detected the change in caregiver feedback and modified their expectations, providing support for the presence of a statistical learning mechanism in social interactions. Submitted by Liana Khananashvili (khananashvili@iit.edu) on 2014-10-23T19:49:49Z No. of bitstreams: 1 LossiaThesis_Final.pdf: 278755 bytes, checksum: eb3595f7e82cb1882bf7fe309185c5f6 (MD5) Made available in DSpace on 2014-10-23T19:49:49Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 LossiaThesis_Final.pdf: 278755 bytes, checksum: eb3595f7e82cb1882bf7fe309185c5f6 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2014-05 M.S. in Psychology, May 2014 2014 2014-05 http://hdl.handle.net/10560/3304 en Thesis born digital application/pdf In Copyright http://rightsstatements.org/page/InC/1.0/ Restricted Access PSYCH / Institute of Psychology Illinois Institute of Technology Affiliated department