Prominent scientists from several well-known universities proclaimed that based on the test results that they consistently received, infants could tell the difference between a news broadcast and a video call with their actual grandparent. Based on the fact that children can make sophisticated inferences about the events that transpire around them before they are even able to talk this comes as no surprise.
One researcher even proclaimed that babies could determine where or not an adult is talking to them, in real time, and this is arguably one of the real reasons why some television shows speak directly to their audience such as Dora The Explorer and Bob, The Builder for example.
While it may be true that scientists have always studied the impact that passive television viewing has on children as well as how efficiently they can learn from educational programming, scientists are just in the beginning phases of understanding how children interpret on-screen interactions with another individual via video call technology.
Interestingly enough, babies seem to grasp the concept of video chatting significantly more natural than having phone conversations, and this is because children cannot speak back on forth on the phone while they are in their infancy stage. Scientists believe that a large part of the reason why babies can tell the difference between a Skype call and a regular TV show is the fact that their caregivers encourage interaction. For example, researchers have found that children interact with the adult on the other end of the screen by blowing them kisses, sharing food with them and making silly faces, and this all occurred as a result of the fact that their caregivers encourage it such as saying “where’s grandma?” and “Blow a kiss back to grandpa” for example. Some research also indicates that children thrive on video interactions. Studies suggest that toddlers, in particular, experience a higher level of comfort when they interact with their mother via video chat as opposed to the phone.
To sum things up, if you have ever wondered whether or not children can discern a video chat from a TV show, rest assured that they can, and emerging research proves this fact.
