Auditory social cognition precursors in 12-month-old infants with visual impairment: A preliminary study

Background and aim

Clinical observations have long suggested that infants with visual impairment (VI) may experience delays in the development of socio-cognitive skills compared to their fully-sighted (FS) counterparts. Nonetheless, evidence supporting anecdotical observations remains limited. In this study, we assessed socio-cognitive behaviours in a cohort of infants with VI and compared them to a group of FS infants between 9 and 12 months of age.

Methods

Our analysis focused on key early markers of social and cognitive engagement, including gaze orienting, communicative signalling, and interaction patterns with the environment and caregivers.

Results

Gaze orienting and the production of basic communication signals, such as vocalizations and gestures aimed at initiating social interaction, were largely comparable between the VI and FS groups. However, important differences emerged in more complex socio-cognitive behaviours: infants with VI exhibited significantly less triangulation and produced fewer pointing gestures compared to FS infants.

Conclusions

These findings highlight specific socio-cognitive vulnerabilities in early development associated with visual impairment and underscore the need for targeted early interventions.

What this paper adds

This study explores the early emergence of socio-cognitive developmental precursors in a sample of 9- to 12-month-old infants with visual impairments, compared to their fully sighted counterparts. The results indicate that specific socio-cognitive vulnerabilities may be observable as early as the end of the first year of life in infants with visual impairments, who demonstrated less triangulation abilities and produced fewer pointing gestures than full-sighted peers. We suggest that these findings could help refine early intervention strategies for this population.