Psychology of newborns the focus of conference

Published On Mon 7 Apr 2014 by Roddy Isles

An international workshop examining the psychology of newborn infants will take place at the University of Dundee this weekend.

Academics from Italy, France, Sweden, Greece and the UK will gather in Dundee to discuss ‘The newborn infant: A missing stage in developmental psychology’ on Saturday, 12th April. The event takes place at the University’s School of Psychology, itself a leading centre for research into developmental psychology.

The psychology of newborn babies has largely been overlooked in the field to date. Although neonatology, the study of the newborn, is well established in medical science, there is no distinct stage for the newborn period in psychology and psychological research on the newborn is relatively scarce.

This conference will explore existing theory and empirical evidence relating to newborn psychology before considering the methodological challenges to regarding this as a distinct stage of human development in psychology.

Organiser Dr Emese Nagy said, “We will be delighted to welcome renowned academics from across Europe to the School of Psychology to discuss how newborns evoke and provoke their social environment in a sensitive period of early neonatal development.”

The day will be divided into three sessions - The Human Neonate (Newborns in Company); Evolutionary, comparative approach and neurophysiological approaches; and Observing, measuring and interpreting newborn behaviour and applied psychological intervention techniques.

Contact:
Roddy Isles
Head of Press
University of Dundee
Nethergate, Dundee, DD1 4HN.
TEL: 01382 384910
MOBILE: 07800 581902
E-MAIL: r.isles@dundee.ac.uk