March 14, 2013

"Infants dislike, may want to harm those different from themselves: study."

"Using puppets, researchers found the babies’ 'friends' liked the same food. Enemies, meanwhile, were those puppets who liked a different food. A second puppet would then help, harm or act neutrally toward the original puppets. The babies 'far preferred' the puppets that harmed the puppets with different tastes than theirs."
“One baby even planted a kiss on the puppet she liked,” the Canadian news source reported.
The little devils!

100 comments:

Crimso said...

Sounds like Congress.

Kensington said...

Babies are bad people.

somefeller said...

Judging who one's friends or enemies are based on aesthetic preferences is perfectly legitimate.

Anonymous said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Wait a minute... that's not what we believe... therefore, it cant possibly be true.

Rose said...

I suspect if they could do the study, they'd find the same thing with all animals, dogs, cats, all of them. And it can be based on foods, sounds, locations, looks, not just color - in some part chemistry, and in some part some kind of instinct. Who knows.

David R. Graham said...

"The innocence of children is in the weakness of their limbs, not in their wills." St. Augustine of Hippo.

Materialism is stupid. Persisting in it is criminally insane.

Misrepresenting or deploring the Christian Doctrine of Universal Separation from Origin, with consequent Universal Deformation of Existence, is demonic.

Revenant said...

This will come as news to people who have never known children ever.

Rob said...

Takeaway: it's natural to hate vegans.

KCFleming said...

Everyone else seems afraid to say it, but that babies are kind of a cunt, right?

Henry said...

From Time Bandits (1981):

Napoleon: Little things hitting each other. THAT'S WHAT I LIKE!

Chef Mojo said...

"The innocence of children is in the weakness of their limbs, not in their wills." St. Augustine of Hippo.

Materialism is stupid. Persisting in it is criminally insane.

Misrepresenting or deploring the Christian Doctrine of Universal Separation from Origin, with consequent Universal Deformation of Existence, is demonic.


Someone give this guy a shot of whiskey and send him out back around the dumpster to mutter at the stars and bums, m'kay?

Chef Mojo said...

So, why the "bad science" tag?

Henry said...

So how does this work with breast- vs. bottle feeding?

KCFleming said...

All the more reason to ban high capacity milk magazines.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

All the more reason to ban high capacity milk magazines.

I got sidetracked by sequester tie ins.

edutcher said...

Hmmmm,

Then all that stuff about people preferring their own kind is inborn?

Makes you wonder how all that intermarriage came about.

somefeller said...

Judging who one's friends or enemies are based on aesthetic preferences is perfectly legitimate.

Only if we turn off our brains and assume those who look like us, act like us, sound like us, and have our tastes are always going to be our friends.

sakredkow said...

"Infants dislike, may want to harm those different from themselves: study."

That's why they are infants.

KCFleming said...

Children are born savages and only with great effort become civilized, if at all.

Utopians believe children are pure, only to be corrupted by 'society'. Rousseau's poisonous ideas still infect the masses.

Chip Ahoy said...

They wanted the crap-eating puppet destroyed.

Suddenly the children took on the aspect of table salt shakers and rigidly moved around but using their little feet as if they were gliding on unseen wheels

⚡⚡Exterminate
⚡⚡Exterminate
⚡⚡Exterminate

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

That's why they are infants.

That is sooo paedophobic.

rcommal said...

Color me unsurprised, your tags notwithstanding, Althouse.

KCFleming said...

Babies never civilized grow up to attend large protests with giant paper mâché heads.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

If everybody is born a republican... the left has to get an earlier start.

Cant you see?

sakredkow said...

You know what you are? A giant baby.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Out of the mouth of babes.

Icepick said...

Everyone else seems afraid to say it, but that babies are kind of a cunt, right?

FTW!

David said...

We need the government to get involved.

AlanKH said...

Original sin - confirmed by science!

Anonymous said...

Those little selfish, Darwinian humans. They need a good does of secular humanism and progressive democracy.

Maybe some Marxism.

Or just some Obama chanting at school.

Christy said...

Would there not be survival success in bonding with those who share your value system? Sounds innate.

Half the therapist' s job is to make us let go of survival skills of childhood which no longer serve us. To civilized US, help us learn to function in a diverse society, which is not natural, apparently.

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

Off topic.

The eyes have it...

Apparently, at one time, that was not for the best.

Wont using our eyes to (mani)pulate things cause our brains to shift valuable brain resources?

Lem the artificially intelligent said...

"Infants dislike, may want to harm those different from themselves..."

All the more reason to ban 16 ounce bottles.

Nomennovum said...

I'd like to point out two things about this unsurprising study:

1. The baby that kissed the killer puppet was a female. Here we see confirmation that girls are always going for the bad boys.

2. All the babies were Canadian.

tim maguire said...

The use of puppets as proxys for people in child studies has been discredited. These researchers have no idea what's going on in the minds of these babies or what they think the puppets are.

This kind of research is all about adults projecting their own ideas onto children.

Nomennovum said...

Humans are not born tabulae rasae, so I wouldn't dismiss such studies out of hand, even the Canadian ones.

TJIC said...

But...wait.

Wait.

Wait.

Culturalism is nothing but racism, and racism is taught to us by angry white men.

So this scientific finding makes no sense, and the science must be adjusted to fit the theory.

Chip Ahoy said...

Different than puppet shows but similar in setup, the staging and such, and things you don't care to swallow but would care to smash, the doctor is in.

Hammond X. Gritzkofe said...

Who'da thunk it!

Can we next expect an announcement of new scientific findings suggesting men and women have different genitalia?

Col Mustard said...

"Bad science"? If it's "good science" to conclude homosexuals are born to "stick with their own kind," why can't that principle apply to non-sexual similarities?

Eric the Fruit Bat said...

Fuck.

And yet again, scientific fact sucks the humor right out of an otherwise perfectly good cartoon.

LINK.

rhhardin said...

Infants are made small to limit the damage they can do.

If things happened as children wished, things would be crashing right and left.

Joe Biden, America's Putin said...

Your tax dollars at work.

Matt Sablan said...

Some babies sent the bad puppet to the corn field.

Darrell said...

If babies aren't stopped, they will wind up taking over the world someday.

Palladian said...

When you were a baby, Anthony, you didn't like the other babies. You made them stop crying, and so no one wanted to have anymore. You were our favorite baby so we didn't need anymore.

You did real good, Anthony!

Sydney said...

That study involved babies 9-14 months old. We already know that babies at that age have strong "stranger anxiety." They are all about staying in their familial comfort zone. It isn't surprising they like people/puppets who are most like their families.

Michael said...

I guess the real questions should center on the puppets. Chances are good that the lefty babies favored the puppets.

Unknown said...

Well, this certainly makes abortion a more attractive option.

Rusty said...

pogo. You're a hoot.

Anonymous said...

Naked Robot Baby says:

Today I learned about Doubt. I do not like Doubt. Things were better before Doubt.

Anonymous said...

Different is Bad. It makes me Doubt myself. It is like Being Wet. Wet makes me Cry.

Anonymous said...

What I Like Makes me Me. Now I don't like Them. When Bad Things happen to Them I feel no Doubt. I am Happy and Dry.

Anonymous said...

If I do not Like Something it Should Not Be There. This World is Too Big.

Anonymous said...

I must now Depend on Others for my needs. The needs of Others Who Like Different Things get in the Way of my Needs. I do not like That. I do not like the Others.

Anonymous said...

This New World is Not Always Warm. Mommy tries but she is Not the Big Spirit. Today I have Learned Disappointment.

Anonymous said...

Disappointment and Doubt. Why did The Big Spirit cast me out? I am small and have no Defenses.

Anonymous said...

I like Mommy better. I now have Doubt about Papa. He does not eat the strained carrots with me.

Anonymous said...

When Papa picks me up I feel Disappointment. It is like being Wet, even when he Dries Me.

Anonymous said...

I see no Reason for this World. Eat and Sleep are my only Escape.

Anonymous said...

I am waiting to go back to the Big Spirit. Surely this is a Mistake.

Anonymous said...

I understand the Puppet is Not Like Me. I know the Difference. I do not Like the Difference. They are taunting me.

Anonymous said...

The Big Spirit will Teach them. They will feel Wet with No Way to Get Dry.

Anonymous said...

Each Day I feel farther away from The Big Spirit. It is a Sadness beyond any Wet I have known.

Anonymous said...

Peek-a-Boo does NOT make this Better.

Anonymous said...

Peek-a-Boo makes me think there is No Single Truth to this World. Here it is. Now it is Gone. Here it is. Now it is Gone. I do not Like this Lesson.

Anonymous said...

Papa goes Away for large parts of the Day. When he Comes Back it is Like he thinks I Understand this. I do not.

Anonymous said...

Maybe the Big Spirit is playing Peek-A-Boo with me. This cannot be True.

Anonymous said...

Do the Other Babies feel this too? It does not matter. They cannot Help Me. They can only Take Away.

Anonymous said...

Sometimes I cry out at night in Terror.

Withe the Big Spirit I never felt Terror. I did not even know what Terror was.

What is the point of this World?

Anonymous said...

Mama tries to Soothe me. It works a little. But there is always now the Emptiness.

Anonymous said...

I can control my Hands a bit more Every Day. What little to Look Forward to.

Anonymous said...

The Emptiness is worse than the Wetness. I hope I will Learn that this All Goes Away.

Anonymous said...

In my Crib at Night I hear Sounds. I do not know what they are.

They make the Emptiness Bigger.

Anonymous said...

I fear the Big Spirit has Forgotten Me. Doubt, Disappointment and Fear: this is what I have been Left With.

Anonymous said...

Mama rocks me back and forth. I like this but she always Stops.

Anonymous said...

I have Learned that all the Good Things come to a Stop.

Anonymous said...

Papa calls me His Big Strong Boy. His Lies do not soothe me.

I am not sure I can Believe anything he says to Me.

Sydney said...

Betamax- the French baby.

Anonymous said...

I want to Sleep on My Stomach but they Will Not Let Me. It is as if Pointless Deprivation is the essence of This World.

Anonymous said...

Mama and papa play with Me to bring themselves Joy. I have no Say in the matter.

Anonymous said...

Sometimes I think Mama and Papa Caused All of This to Happen.

Today I understand Blame.

Aridog said...

B F Skinner's ghosts return...this time with the "operant conditioning puppets!"

Infancy is usually defined as pre-speech, usually 12 months of less, and in this sample the ages are in the shaped sounds (such as vowel sounds), speech development (learning to discriminate between sounds), & forming language/words stage. Hardly tabula rasa (which Novennovum cited) and determinant of innate behavior.

First question: Why was age 9 months to 14 months selected?

Second question: Was any reward for behavior identified?...or conversely,, controlled for...?

In short: A nifty study based upon a conclusion (innate negative discrimination) in search of a hypothesis.

While the observed behaviors may be true, the theory proposed about "why" is derived, not hypothetical.

My limited experience with booger vault kidlets not-with-standing, I have extensive experiences with predatory mammals, in their infancy and developmental phases,...and every single one of them refutes the premise (posed as a conclusion) of this study. I doubt humans are so different.

I might be wrong, but nothing reported about this study indicates that. If I am, someone tell me. Very little is actually reported.

Aridog said...

betamax3000 said...

Different is Bad. It makes me Doubt myself. It is like Being Wet. Wet makes me Cry.

What I Like Makes me Me. Now I don't like Them. When Bad Things happen to Them I feel no Doubt. I am Happy and Dry.


By Jove, I believe you've got it! :-))

Freeman Hunt said...

Were babes as strong as men, all mothers would be dead.

Methadras said...

Babies have an innate, hardwired judgement center on who friends and enemies are. Gosh, I wonder who taught them that?

Anonymous said...

On the Good Side, Mama has Breasts. I think I will always like Breasts.

DADvocate said...

Never trust a puppet.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y6_h9mLW9mw

DADvocate said...

I have four kids. Once, after making my youngest daughter eat Brussel sprouts, I awoke from a nap on the couch with a sock puppet in my face saying, "I hate Brussel sprouts and you're going to die." Then my infinitely cute daughter gave me the kiss of death.

Sam L. said...

I sense more than a whiff of bogosity.

ken in tx said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
ken in tx said...

If you have raised children, you know that you don't have to teach them to lie, hit, bite, to be selfish with their stuff. These things come quite naturally. You have to teach them otherwise. Lyrics from South Pacific not withstanding, you don't have to teach them to hate others who are different either. It comes naturally too. I saw it in public schools where I taught.

I take it as proof of the doctrine of original sin.

30yearProf said...

Human beings are the most successful predators on Earth. We kill whatever gets in our way.

We are wholly unsuitable for a peaceful utopia. Only our tolerence lets those who want a "lovey-dovey" world survive.

30yearProf said...

Human beings are the most successful predators on Earth. We kill whatever gets in our way.

We are wholly unsuitable for a peaceful utopia. Only our tolerence lets those who want a "lovey-dovey" world survive.

Dust Bunny Queen said...

Self interest.....starts early. Who would have guessed? Well, except for anyone who has ever been a parent.

Clue for the clueless. Animals have self interest motivations also.

Amartel said...

The article positions us, using photographs of multiracial babies, to think the babies are being racists but the article itself says that the babies like other babies who like the same food as they do. The article never comes out and says that babies are hostile to babies of other races. Which makes sense because how much time does a baby spend looking at itself in the mirror? A baby's sense of self must be based primarily on what he likes to eat. In Babyworld, that's the important thing: food. Didn't Newsweek have a cover article about Racist Baby (with a photo of a caucasian baby, of course)? That right there, being part of a Newsweek cover story, is a credibility destroyer.

Aridog said...

Moderately O.T. ...

@ Betamax3000's string of comment snippets on this thread were pretty cool, and accurate. But I keep expecting his/her avatar to be this guy.

Speaking of avatars, ever since @ Nomennovum called his avatar "the lawyers coming over the stern to get ye...arrgggh!" , or something like that, I can't get the quote out of my head when I see the avatar or name.

As you were, carry on ...

Oh, wait...DBQ has also got it right...and I am unanimous in this...

Self interest.....starts early

Absolutely...aka "survival instinct" ... probably the only "innate" behavioral trait we have. By the age of 9 to 14 months it is well enhanced and developed, via learning, which is another "bug" in this purported study of "innate" discrimination.

Gospace said...

Long post. Reading "The Emperor's New Mind" (Penrose) and "Godel, Escher, Bach..." (Hofstadter) many years ago brought be to a conclusion- public schools and idiot liberals are teaching children to be racist. Because they have never actually studied children.
I'm 58. Way back when, when other people my age were kids, schools, church, and public groups (BSA, GSA, etc.) all taught young kids how we were all ALIKE. You know, the E Pluribus Unum type of thing.
Then, educators, convinced by the liberal intelligentsia, embraced cultural diversity. Now, instead of teaching young skulls full of mush (Rush's phrase) how we are all alike, and worship the same God, and require food and sustenance, etc., we teach children how everyone is different, and teach them to "embrace the difference".
Doesn't work. Infants and children are HARDWIRED to fear difference. Form the first book, I believe, if a child growing up in a Jewish settlement in Russia surrounded by bearded men encounters a clean shaven man, he would flee. Which he should- clean shaven Cossacks were hazardous to a young Jewish child's life.
Same is good- different is bad. Which why a child can eat PB&J 37 days in a row. And why most flee from snakes, dogs (if they don't have one), lions and tigers and bears. The unknown and different IS dangerous for a young child. And if you tell them someone is DIFFERENT- you are telling them someone is BAD- even if you think you aren't. Because different is hardwired to be bad.
Until someone reached the age of reason, they cannot embrace differences. Just cannot. And once something is programmed into them, getting rid of it, even after they reach the age of reason, is difficult indeed.
Personal example. I was brought up on a relatively bland (but healthy) diet. I eat a very limited number of fruits and veggies. Really limited. My kids, all of them, eat papaya, star apples, pomegranates, oranges, any exotic melon, etc. It wasn't until my 2nd son was 27 and I was feeding something new (and serving it enthusiastically) to my younger kids, that he suddenly blurted out- "Hey, I just realized something. You don't eat any of these fruits you've always given us." And he was right- but I got them to eat them by being excited and telling them how it was another fruit just like the others they enjoyed, but tasted even BETTER! IOW, I lied. But, they eat a far larger variety of things then I ever did or do. Not by telling them the fruits were exotic and different, but by telling them were the same and BETTER.

With cultures, you really can't do the same. IF you teach kids the differences between cultures rather than the sameness, then to get them to not see them as BAD, you would have to tell them they are BETTER. UH- really bad idea if you want to continue your own culture.

At younger ages, it is best to emphasize the sameness in PEOPLE, and not teach other cultures until high school age. Elsewise, you are teaching that other cultures are inherently bad. Just the way it is- children are hardwired. It's a survival mechanism to fear differences and like sameness. And hardwiring is tough to reprogram.

Gospace said...

Thought I'd throw in the toddler's creed, which is shared by most of the mothers I know.

Toddler's Creed
If I want it, it's mine.
If I give it to you and change my mind later, it's mine.
If I can take it away from you, it's mine.
If I had it a little while ago, it's mine.
If it's mine, it will never belong to anybody else, no matter what.
If we are building something together, all the pieces are mine.
If it looks just like mine, it's mine.

There are many different versions of it...

Anonymous said...

OK, OCD. I have nothing to add but cannot bear to see a post at 99 comments (sorry Jay-Z).

100.

I feel better.