Imitative Behavior Research Articles

Self-guided behavioral skills training: A public health approach to promoting nurturing care environments.

The World Health Organization identified the promotion of "Nurturing Care Environments" as a global health priority. Responsive caregiving, 1 of 5 domains describing nurturing care, is critical for healthy child development. Relatively little research has evaluated population-level interventions aimed to increase responsive caregiving during the first 1,000 days of an infant's life. In this pilot study, we evaluated an intervention designed for population-level dissemination that targeted responsive caregiving. The self-guided behavioral skills training aimed to teach mothers to imitate infant vocalizations. The intervention was delivered within an on-line asynchronous training. All 3 mothers increased vocal imitative behavior following training without receiving coaching or behavior-specific feedback from an implementer. The results offer a preliminary proof of concept with implications for population-level intervention design and evaluation.

Imitation of counter-goal behavior: The role of psychological distance and level of construal

Previous research has demonstrated that individuals are more likely to engage in imitation of movements when the observed behavior is psychologically proximal. The present research tested whether movement imitation of proximal behavior is increased even when imitation is in conflict with own task goals. Participants completed a connect-the-dots task that was presented as either a speed task or an accuracy task. Additionally, participants watched a video of a person modeling the solution to the task in a way that contradicted the stated goal. Temporal distance to the model was manipulated in Experiment 1. Participants imitated the model's way to solve the task more when the model was proximal and followed the task goal comparably more when the model was distant. Experiment 2 replicated the effect with a direct mindset manipulation and additionally ruled out an alternative explanation (i.e., a stronger goal focus when thinking abstractly).

The Strategic Dynamics of Imitation and Diffusion

Imitation and diffusion remain central concerns for scholars from diverse disciplines and backgrounds such as economics, organizational sociology, and strategy (see Lieberman & Asaba, 2006; Strang & Soule, 1998; Young, 2009). This research has predominantly focused on the conditions that enable or deter imitation, and to a lesser extent the performance consequences for imitators versus innovators or early entrants. The findings are mixed on the extent to which imitative efforts harm or benefit the performance of early versus later entrants. Moreover, the recent proliferation of open-source strategies calls into question the established wisdom that imitation necessarily harms the performance of innovators. It may thus be time to employ more sophisticated empirical strategies to uncover what drives the strategic dynamics of imitation and diffusion, and to reinvigorate the debate by focusing on the mechanisms that shape imitative behavior and the ensuing competitive dynamics. This symposium brings together three tightly connected papers by authors from a range of backgrounds and vintages, and two discussants who have shaped the debate, to address several questions informed by contemporary empirical research: (1) How and when can an imitative product harm (or improve) the performance of the original? (2) How does the order in which firms expand their scope affect their performance? Is it the case that early entrants benefit and laggards suffer as a result of the bandwagon effect? Relatedly, (3) even if early-mover advantage and laggard costs are found, are these driven by intrinsic benefits of moving early rather than late, or is this a matter of fit where selection drives results instead? (4) What explains an industry’s low deterrence of imitation, followed by vigorous patenting? Beyond shedding light on a set of complementary questions, this symposium aims to identify important areas for future research on imitation and diffusion by distilling key lessons from this literature, from opening the debate on identification and endogeneity in assessing the impacts of early versus late imitation, to articulating the specific mechanisms that underpin firms’ strategic choices in terms of imitation. Selection in Early Mover and Bandwagon Effects: Assessing US Banks' Scope Expansion Payoff Presenter: Nicola Cetorelli; Federal Reserve Bank of New York Presenter: Michael G Jacobides; London Business School An Unintended Consequence of Imitation: Unpacking How and When an Imitative Product can Harm Presenter: Erdem Yilmaz; Department of Management and Technology, Bocconi U. Presenter: Ivana Naumovska; INSEAD Innovation and Imitation: Design in the Global Tire Industry Presenter: Jung Kwan Kim; Temple U. Presenter: Vivek Tandon; Fox School of Business, Temple U. Presenter: Ram Mudambi; Temple U.

Do people imitate when making decisions? Evidence from a spatial Prisoner's Dilemma experiment.

How do people decide which action to take? This question is best answered using Game Theory, which has proposed a series of decision-making mechanisms that people potentially use. In network simulations, wherein games are repeated and pay-off differences can be observed, those mechanisms often rely on imitation of successful behaviour. Surprisingly, little to no evidence has been provided about whether people actually imitate more successful opponents when altering their actions in that context. By comparing two experimental treatments wherein participants play the iterated Prisoner’s Dilemma game in a lattice, we aim to answer whether more successful actions are imitated. While in the first treatment, participants have the possibility to use pay-off differences in making their decision, the second treatment hinders such imitation as no information about the gains is provided. If imitation of the more successful plays a role then there should be a difference in how players switch from cooperation to defection between both treatments. Although, cooperation and pay-off levels do not appear to be significantly different between both treatments, detailed analysis shows that there are behavioural differences: when confronted with a more successful co-player, the focal player will imitate her behaviour as the switching is related to the experienced pay-off inequality.

K-Pop 걸 그룹 메이크업 이미지에 따른 지역별 선호도 및 모방 행동 - 한국, 중화권, 일본, 동남아, 미국을 중심으로 -

이 연구는 K-Pop 걸 그룹들의 해외 진출 시 메이크업 전략과 방향성 기획에 도움이 되고자 K-Pop 걸 그룹 의 메이크업 이미지에 따른 국내·외 팬덤 지역별 선호도와 모방 행동을 규명하였다. 연구 방법은 문헌고찰과 실증적 연구를 병행하였다. 걸 그룹 메이크업 이미지를 분류한 후, 국내·외 팬덤 432명을 대상으로 선호도 및 모방 행동에 대한 설문을 실시하였고, SPSS for Windows 24.0으로 빈도분석, 분산분석을 병행하였다. 그 결과 걸 그룹 메이크업 이미지는 내추럴, 큐트, 로맨틱, 엘레강트, 키치, 섹시 6가지로 나타났다. K-Pop 걸 그룹 메이크업 이미지에 따른 선호도를 지역별로 나누어 분석한 결과는 다음과 같다. 내추럴 메이크업은 동 남아에서, 큐트 메이크업은 일본에서, 로맨틱 메이크업은 한국, 일본, 동남아에서 특히 더 선호하고 있었다. 엘레강트와 키치 메이크업은 한국에서 섹시 메이크업은 중화권에서 특히 더 선호하였다. K-Pop 걸 그룹의 메이크업 이미지 6가지에 따른 지역별 모방 행동은 다음과 같다. 한국은 내추럴, 로맨틱, 엘레강트 이미지의 모방 행동은 높지만 큐트, 키치, 섹시 이미지의 모방 행동은 낮은 것으로 나타났다. 중화권에서는 내추럴 이 미지 그리고 큐트의 눈썹, 섹시의 눈 화장 모방 행동이 높은 것으로 나타났다. 일본에서는 큐트 이미지의 모방 행동과 그리고 키치의 볼 화장의 모방 행동이 높은 것으로 나타났다. 동남아에서는 내추럴 이미지 그리 고 로맨틱의 피부, 섹시의 눈과 입술 모방 행동이 높은 것으로 나타났다. 북미에서는 키치, 섹시 이미지의 모방 행동이 더 높은 것으로 나타났다. 이에 따라 메이크업 이미지에 따른 선호도와 모방 행동에는 차이가 있는 것으로 나타났다. 따라서 걸 그룹 해외 진출 시 지역에 따라 메이크업 이미지를 다르게 추구할 필요가 있다.

EXPERIENCE OF CREATIVITY IN EARLY ONTOGENY

«children’s creativity» and reflects the main interpretations of these terms in psychology and pedagogy. Children’s creativity should be understood as the creation of a subjectively new (meaningful) product for the child – drawings, designs, games, stories, creation of previously unknown details that characterize the created image in a new way: different variants of images, situations, movements, characteristics of heroes, other actions; the usage of previously learned images or expressive means in a new situation; a manifestation of initiative in everything. In this case, the main stages of child’s creative process, according to scientists, are: the emergence of a sense of obscurity (the appearance of a problem); a number of questions, clarifications; highlighting items that are important for successful solving of the problem, understanding of the problem; formation of the hypothesis; searching and finding solutions.Child’s creative activity, which leads to the creation of a subjectively new product, is the first stage of assimilation of the socio-cultural experience. The child’s experience is accumulated, adjusted, and functions as a “resource-cumulative” education. At the same time, the child’s experience is both the experience of adaptation to oneself, and the experience of forming “self”. In natural conditions, the experience is based on the principles of “what can I do”, easiness and ability to perform.Attention is paid to the role of creative experience in early ontogeny. The factors that are necessary for the development of the creative potential of the individual are identified: lack of a pattern of regulated behavior; the presence of a positive pattern of creative behavior; creation of conditions for imitation of creative behavior and blocking of manifestations of aggressive and destructive behavior; social reinforcement of creative behavior.Based on the analysis of studies, the signs and patterns of creativity in childhood are highlighted. Emphasis is placed on the role of educational practice in shaping the child’s personal experience.

Interactive-Imitation-Based Distributed Coordination Scheme for Smart Manufacturing

Concordant operations among automatic industrial devices (i.e., agents) play a significant role in achieving efficient smart manufacturing. Existing multiagent cooperation methods focus on centralized training with decentralized execution, which is unsuitable for the edge-based distributed industrial scenarios. To harmonize distributed devices’ actions and enhance the production efficiency, in this article, we propose an Interactive-Imitation-based Distributed Coordination (IIDC) algorithm. Specifically, we leverage the generative adversarial imitation learning (GAIL) model to direct one agent's actions by following external professional demonstrations. We also adopt the self-imitation learning (SIL) model to direct one agent's potential actions by following its own previous good experiences. As the imperfect demonstrations in the GAIL-based interagent imitation process may degrade the imitation accuracy, we present a confidence-based matching method to reduce the gap between the professional and imitative behaviors. Furthermore, during the SIL-based intra-agent imitation process, the rewardless explorations also lead to nonoptimal imitation policy. We then present a Stein variational policy gradient based self-imitation method to learn an expected optimal policy. We validate the IIDC algorithm's effectiveness via the sequential assembly task. Evaluation results demonstrate that the IIDC algorithm can enhance the production efficiency evidently.

Multi-Agent Cooperation for an Active Perception Based on Driving Behavior: Application in a Car-Following Behavior

ABSTRACT Perception is presented as a predominant concern in the functioning of a driving system, where it is necessary to understand how the information, events, and actions of each influence the state of the environment and the objectives of the driver, immediately and in the near future. In this context, we present in this paper a driving model composed of five layers which ensure the autonomy and road safety of a driver agent, in particular, we are interested in this article in the concept of perception which is translated by the first three layers of our driving model, which are: visual perception, comprehension and projection, where the execution of these three layers is based on the driving behavior adopted by the driver agent, which is in our case the car-following driving behavior. Furthermore, we present in this paper two simulation scenarios, the first one is realized based on urban area conditions, and the second one is conducted by using Next Generation SIMulation (NGSIM) dataset of a highway in Los Angeles, California. In this context, the experimental results present the effectiveness of our driving model based on the imitation of human behavior and according to reducing the duration of perception.

Stimulation of child's sexual imitation behavior through Neurolinguistic programming

This study aims to determine the forms of child sexual imitation behavior, influencing factors and the role of parents and teachers in addressing the sexual imitation of children. This type of research is descriptive qualitative research using direct observation and interview methods as research data sources. The results of this study indicate that children engage in sexual imitation in the form of sexual movements. This behavior is caused by errors in parenting. Parenting is too permissive so that it does not allow the child to sleep alone as a result the child sees his parents having sexual relations and imitates them when playing or studying at school. In dealing with these behaviors, a Neurolinguistic Programming (NLP) approach can be used where parents play a role in training the independence of children by (1) creating a pleasant atmosphere for children (2) giving positive suggestions through fairy tales. While in school teachers provide positive education and suggestions through learning programs in schools by integrating sexual education into the appropriate learning themes.

Acceptability of the Transitional Wearable Companion "+me" in Children With Autism Spectrum Disorder: A Comparative Pilot Study.

+me is an experimental interactive soft toy, looking like a panda, developed for young children. When touched on the paws or head (inputs), the toy can emit attractive responses such as colored lights and amusing sounds (outputs). +me is wirelessly connected to a control tablet through which an adult caregiver can modify its input-output contingencies so as to produce different, rewarding response patterns using the same device. Given these features, we propose +me as a potential novel tool to support the therapy of Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). The allure of the device could be exploited to capture the attention and encourage the social interaction of toddlers during play activities with therapists. In this pilot study, +me was tested on two small groups of children aged 30–48 months, one group diagnosed with ASD and the second with Communication Disorder, a condition that often presents—especially at an early age—overlapping symptoms with ASD. The proposed play activities aimed to foster simple imitative behaviors and stimulate the engagement of the children. The results were compared with those of a previous test run on Typically Developed children. Preliminary observations, based on the analysis of video recordings, suggest that, on average, +me is able to encourage a positive engagement and that different groups tend to manifest some different behaviors.

Motor cortex activity during action observation predicts subsequent action imitation in human infants

From early on, human infants acquire novel actions through observation and imitation. Yet, the neural mechanisms that underlie infants’ action learning are not well understood. Here, we combine the assessment of infants’ neural processes during the observation of novel actions on objects (i.e. transitive actions) and their subsequent imitation of those actions. Most importantly, we found that the 7–10 ​Hz motor cortex activity increased during action observation and predicted action imitation in 20-month-olds (n ​= ​36). 10-month-olds (n ​= ​42), who did not yet reliably imitate others’ actions, showed a highly similar neural activity pattern during action observation. The presence or absence of communicative signals did neither affect infants’ neural processing nor their subsequent imitation behavior. These findings provide first evidence for neural processes in the motor cortex that allow infants to acquire transitive actions from others ‒ and pinpoint a key learning mechanism in the developing brain of human infants.

From global drivers to local land-use change: understanding the northern Laos rubber boom

Crop booms in forest frontiers are a major contributor to land conversion and deforestation. In this study, we investigate the smallholder-driven northern Laos rubber boom in two case study areas (CSAs) with different speed and intensity of rubber expansion. We assess the relative importance of market, contextual, and behavioral factors in fostering or hindering the conversion of forest to rubber plantations. We develop a Bayesian network (BN) model of land-use change based on household surveys, expert interviews, market price data, and land use maps covering the period 2000–2017. We use regression analysis to inform the structure of the BN, compare model results, and analyze time-varying effects. The BN and regression models incorporate perceived price signals as a combination of market price and local price knowledge, and local self-reinforcing imitation dynamics as a combination of aggregate rubber conversion and imitation behavior elicited in the survey. Results show that deforestation was lower in strictly protected areas but not in forests with lesser protection status. Imitation had a large effect on rubber uptake in both areas. In the CSA that experienced the most intensive spread of rubber, price signals transmitted through social networks had a significant impact, especially throughout the stage of rapid expansion. Rubber expansion continued in both areas during periods of descending prices mainly because of increased cash availability and access to inputs. Our research sheds light on the underlying dynamics of crop booms and contributes to the understanding of agricultural expansion processes.

The cognitive neuropsychiatry of Tourette syndrome

ABSTRACT Introduction: Converging evidence from both clinical and experimental studies has shown that Tourette syndrome (TS) is not a unitary condition, but a cluster of multiple phenotypes, which encompass both tics and specific behavioural and cognitive symptoms (mainly attention-deficit and hyperactivity disorder and obsessive-compulsive disorder). Methods: We conducted a narrative review of the recent literature on the cognitive neuropsychiatry of TS. Results: Although clinical research has shown that TS is not associated with cognitive deficits per se, the findings of recent studies have suggested the presence of subtle alterations in specific cognitive functions. A promising line of research on imitative behaviour could provide a common background for the alterations in executive control and social cognition observed in TS. Two different (but not mutually exclusive) neurocognitive theories have recently suggested that TS could originate from altered perception-action binding and social decision-making dysfunction, respectively. Conclusions: Since the presence of behavioural comorbidities influences individualised treatment approaches, it is likely that a more precise characterisation of TS phenotypes, including cognitive aspects, will result in improved levels of care for patients with tic disorders.

A Qualitative Analysis of Self-Harm and Suicide in Sri Lankan Printed Newspapers.

. Background: Media reporting may influence suicidal behavior. In-depth exploration of how self-harm and suicide are portrayed in newspaper articles in a middle-income country such as Sri Lanka is lacking. Aims: We aimed to explore how self-harm and suicide are portrayed in Sri Lankan printed newspapers. Method: Seven English- and Sinhala-language Sri Lankan newspapers were screened for articles reporting on self-harm and suicide (December 1, 2014 to January 31, 2015). A thematic analysis was conducted. Results: In the 78 articles identified for analysis, certain aspects were overemphasized (inappropriate behavior) and others underemphasized (alcohol and complexities of self-harm). Explanations of self-harm were one-sided and a suicide prevention narrative was lacking. Limitations: Another time-frame and inclusion of Tamil newspapers as well as social media and online publications would provide additional understanding. Conclusion: The study found an indication of simplistic reporting. Greater focus on prevention and a nuanced portrayal of self-harm could reduce stigma and imitative behavior.

Dinamika Psikologis yang Mendorong Seseorang Melakukan Pembunuhan: Studi Kasus Pada Narapida dengan Kasus Pembunuhan Berencana di Lembaga Pemasyarakatan X

Every case of premeditated murder carried out by someone must be motivated by certain problems between the perpetrator and the victim that made the perpetrator plan the murder. The purpose of this study is to find out psychological dynamics such as what makes a person commit an act of murder. This study uses a case study method with a qualitative approach. Participants in this study amounted to one person, namely Agus (not real name), a prisoner in a premeditated murder case who was served a punishment at the X penitentiary .In the process, this study used observations, interviews and psychological testing tools that would help researchers in dynamizing participants. The results of this study indicate that Aguscommitted murder was motivated by feelings of jealousy towards his wife, poor coping, inconsistent parenting, bad living environment and imitative behavior make Acapable of killing.

Illiberal Norm Diffusion: How Do Governments Learn to Restrict Nongovernmental Organizations?

Abstract Recent decades have witnessed a global cascade of restrictive and repressive measures against nongovernmental organizations (NGOs). We theorize that state learning from observing the regional environment, rather than NGO growth per se or domestic unrest, explains this rapid diffusion of restrictions. We develop and test two hypotheses: (1) states adopt NGO restrictions in response to nonarmed bottom-up threats in their regional environment (“learning from threats”); (2) states adopt NGO restrictions through imitation of the legislative behavior of other states in their regional environment (“learning from examples”). Using an original dataset on NGO restrictions in ninety-six countries over a period of twenty-five years (1992–2016), we test these hypotheses by means of negative binomial regression and survival analyses, using spatially weighted techniques. We find very limited evidence for learning from threats, but consistent evidence for learning from examples. We corroborate this finding through close textual comparison of laws adopted in the Middle East and Africa, showing legal provisions being taken over almost verbatim from one law into another. In our conclusion, we spell out the implications for the quality of democracy and for theories of transition to a postliberal order, as well as for policy-makers, lawyers, and civil-society practitioners.

Imitation in Chinese Preschool Children: Influence of Prior Self-Experience and Pedagogical Cues on the Imitation of Novel Acts in a Non-Western Culture.

Both prior experience and pedagogical cues modulate Western children’s imitation. However, these factors have not been systematically explored together within a single study. This paper explored how these factors individually and together influence imitation using 4-year-old children born and reared in mainland China (N = 210)—a country that contains almost one-fifth of the world’s population, and in which childhood imitation is under-studied using experimental methodology. The behavior of children in this culture is of special interest to theory because traditional East Asian culture places high value on conformity and fitting in with the group. Thus, high-fidelity imitation is emphasized in the local culture. This value, practice, or norm may be recognized by children at a young age and influence their imitative performance. In this study, we crossed prior self-experience and pedagogical cues, yielding four demonstration groups in addition to a control group. This design allowed us to investigate the degree to which Chinese preschoolers’ imitation was modulated by the two experimental factors. High-fidelity imitation was significantly modulated by prior self-experience but not by pedagogical cues, as measured by the number of novel acts imitated and also the serial order of these acts. This study (i) expands our understanding of factors that modulate imitation of novel behaviors in preschoolers and (ii) contributes to efforts to broaden research beyond Western societies to enrich our theories, particularly regarding social learning and imitation. Imitation is a key mechanism in the acquisition of culturally appropriate behaviors, mannerisms, and norms but who, what, and when children imitate is malleable. This study points to both cross-cultural invariants and variations to provide a fuller picture of the scope and functions of childhood imitation.

Imitation dynamics in the mitigation of the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak in Wuhan, China from 2019 to 2020.

BackgroundThe coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) was first identified in Wuhan, China on December 2019 in patients presenting with atypical pneumonia. Although ‘city-lockdown’ policy reduced the spatial spreading of the COVID-19, the city-level outbreaks within each city remain a major concern to be addressed. The local or regional level disease control mainly depends on individuals self-administered infection prevention actions. The contradiction between choice of taking infection prevention actions or not makes the elimination difficult under a voluntary acting scheme, and represents a clash between the optimal choice of action for the individual interest and group interests.MethodsWe develop a compartmental epidemic model based on the classic susceptible-exposed-infectious-recovered model and use this to fit the data. Behavioral imitation through a game theoretical decision-making process is incorporated to study and project the dynamics of the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan, China. By varying the key model parameters, we explore the probable course of the outbreak in terms of size and timing under several public interventions in improving public awareness and sensitivity to the infection risk as well as their potential impact.ResultsWe estimate the basic reproduction number, R0, to be 2.5 (95% CI: 2.4−2.7). Under the current most realistic setting, we estimate the peak size at 0.28 (95% CI: 0.24−0.32) infections per 1,000 population. In Wuhan, the final size of the outbreak is likely to infect 1.35% (95% CI: 1.00−2.12%) of the population. The outbreak will be most likely to peak in the first half of February and drop to daily incidences lower than 10 in June 2020. Increasing sensitivity to take infection prevention actions and the effectiveness of infection prevention measures are likely to mitigate the COVID-19 outbreak in Wuhan.ConclusionsThrough an imitating social learning process, individual-level behavioral change on taking infection prevention actions have the potentials to significantly reduce the COVID-19 outbreak in terms of size and timing at city-level. Timely and substantially resources and supports for improving the willingness-to-act and conducts of self-administered infection prevention actions are recommended to reduce to the COVID-19 associated risks.

Why is the Capital Market Opening up and Stock Price Linkage?—Empirical Research Based on “Land-Hong Kong Stock Connect”

Based on the quarterly data of all A-share listed companies from 2011 to 2019, this article uses the multi period double difference model to explore the causes and transmission mechanism of the linkage effect of the stock prices of the two cities after the implementation of the “Land-Hong Kong Stock Connect”. The results show that: first, after the implementation of “Land-Hong Kong Stock Connect”, the degree of herd behavior of domestic investors as a whole becomes higher, and the larger the company scale is, the higher the degree of herd behavior of investors is; secondly, after the implementation of “Land-Hong Kong Stock Connect”, all listed companies have the behavior of internal investors imitating external investors, especially small and medium-sized companies; finally, from the overall sample From the point of view, the imitation behavior of internal investors is indeed conducted through the investor network, but it is divided into three categories: large, medium and small companies. Only the imitation transmission path of large companies is the investor network, and small and medium companies do not realize the imitation behavior through the network. The research of this article is helpful to appeal for rational investment of investors and provide empirical evidence support for further opening of capital market.

Responsabilidad de los medios en la prevención del suicidio. Tratamiento informativo en los medios españoles

Suicide has traditionally been silenced by media, following experts recommendations pointing to a possible induction of imitative behaviour in the population. However, this position has recently changed and psychologists and psychiatrists, in addition to the World Health Organization (WHO), request the media to rise awareness about this serious social problem aiming to fight it. Every year, more than 800,000 people commit suicide in the world, which means that one person dies every 40 seconds. Therefore, we depart from a new and apparently agreed upon approach: we must inform. This position being accepted, it is very important to define the limits and the terms. Bibliography on this topic is scarce, only existing one self-regulation reference written by health professionals and journalists in Spain (2018). The aim of this research is to analyze the information on suicide published on the first five months of 2019 by the two main general newspapers in Spain by applying the Code of Ethics on the Treatment of Suicide in the Media promoted by the Association of Journalists of the Balearic Islands. The results show an improvable practice as well as concurring errors remediable to satisfy the demands of organizations, family members and victims by means of responsible and useful journalism.