• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

The Thoughtful Parent

A blog that makes child development approachable.

  • About Me
  • Social-Emotional Development
    • 7 Ways to Teach Your Child About Kindness
    • 4 Powerful Social-Emotional Lessons Kids are Learning During the Pandemic
  • Child Development Classics
    • A Parent’s Guide to Understanding the 4 Attachment Styles
    • Child Psychology Classics: The Mirror Test
  • Toddler Development
    • Research-Backed Real-Life Strategies to Discipline Toddlers without Yelling (even during a pandemic))
    • Research-Backed Ways to Thrive Through the Toddler Years

Child Psychology Classics: The Mirror Test

Child Development Classics · November 4, 2020

At some point or another many parents have placed their infant in front of a mirror and wondered if their child could understand that it was their own reflection they were seeing. In the realms of child development and parenting, this is a common question.

Based on the infant’s reaction, most parents realize pretty quickly that their baby doesn’t really understand that it is themselves in the mirror. This raises the question: when do babies and young children begin to develop a sense of self? Child psychologists have used this mirror test for babies in a creative way to help uncover the answer to this question.

baby mirror

 

 

When Do Babies Recognize Themselves in the Mirror?

In a classic psychological experiment in the 1970s, researchers took a group of children ages 6 to 24 months and placed a spot of lipstick on their noses. They then placed the children in front of a mirror to see how they responded. Here’s what they found:

– Young infants (age 6-12 months) seem to think the baby in the mirror is another baby. They smile and approach the baby in a friendly way.

– Older babies (age 13-24 months) respond with a little more hesitation at this point. Researchers aren’t sure if the children know that the reflection is themselves or whether they still think it is another child.

– Toddlers (age 20-24 months) seem to clearly recognize that the reflection in the mirror is their own. The clear sign of this is that while looking in the mirror, they touch the dot of lipstick on their own nose instead of touching the mirror.

Related reading: Understanding Toddler Growth Spurts (includes a printable guide for what behavior to expect from ages 2-6)

 

Of course, the results of this mirror test for babies are not clear-cut. Just because a toddler recognizes themselves in the mirror doesn’t necessarily mean they have a mental concept of themselves. It may simply mean that by this age they have enough visual maturity to distinguish themselves in the mirror. Other, more complex studies would have to be conducted to determine when the mental concept of the self emerges.

Want to understand more about your new baby? And how to thrive as a new mom? Download my new book!

book for new moms

Interestingly, animal studies have shown that some of the more intelligent mammals such as elephants, dolphins, and chimpanzees also recognize themselves in the mirror. Does this mean that these animals have a mental concept of “the self?” Who knows? It seems unlikely but maybe so. All these animals have fairly complex social systems so maybe they do have a concept of self.

**This post contains affiliate links. When purchasing items through these links, I received a small commission (at no added cost to you.) Thanks!

 

Could you tell when your child started to develop a concept of themselves? How could you tell?

For more info check out this article.

 

Want more information about how your child develops? 
Sign up and receive your FREE cheat sheet

child development myths

It addresses many common parenting myths like attachment, spanking, spoiling and more!

Find this article helpful? Support this blog here:
Buy Me a Coffee at ko-fi.com

 

Here are some other posts you might enjoy:

Why Preschoolers Don’t Follow Instructions

Child Psych Classics: Attachment Theory

Why Child Development and Parenting Research is Important

More classic child psychology resources:

 My all-time favorite parenting book. Research-based and helps you understand how to work with your child’s developing brain

 This classic book is classic for a reason. Great advice for how to use language in a way that kids understand and are motivated to comply.

 

A classic for any student of child psychology or interested parent.

 A wonderful book to help you see past some popular myths of child development. Not everything you hear in the media is true and this book helps you sort out fact from fiction.


Perfect for Pinning:

baby sees self in mirror

 

Share this:

  • Tweet

Related

Filed Under: Child Development Classics Tagged With: babies, child development, self-concept

Amy Webb

Writer and mom of two who brings academic child development and parenting information into the lives of ordinary parents who can use it in their daily lives.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Primary Sidebar

temperament quiz
As a mom of two young boys, I've seen first-hand how research-based child development information, combined with intuition, can guide you through your parenting journey. Although I have a Ph.D.in Human Development and Family Sciences, many of my real parenting discoveries have come through my experience. I believe parenting with confidence comes from knowledge; parenting with grace comes from insight. Join me on this parenting journey of learning and discovery

Learn Your Child’s Temperament

child temperament book

Get Parenting Inspiration at My RedBubble Shop

Preview My New Book!

Search

As seen on

Amazon affiliate links appear on this blog. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases (at no added cost to you).

My Online Course for Moms

stay at home mom course

Popular Posts

  • mirror test babies
    Child Psychology Classics: The Mirror Test
  • top parenting blogs
    23 Best Parenting Blogs
  • acts of kindness ideas for kids
    Acts of Kindness for Kids: Ideas Kids Can Do While Stuck at Home
  • how to be a happy stay-at-home mom
    Toddlers Have Big Emotions. Insight from Research on How to Respond
  • difficult baby temperament
    More Evidence that “Difficult” Babies are Most Influenced by Parents

Join our community of parents!

parenting

Copyright © 2021 · Maker Pro on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it.Ok