UMass Boston

Every baby is different in the way they respond to sights and sounds, yet some researchers have identified some differences across cultural groups. For instance, Asian babies are often found to be calmer than Western babies, and it remains unclear whether this is also true for American-born babies of Asian descent.

The goal of the Asian American Temperament Study is to better understand the range of non-social and social responses for babies born in the United States who come from Asian immigrant or Asian-American families. Previous research has found links in early temperament to later social behavior (highly reactive babies tend to be more shy later in life) and this may be a phenomena only true for White American infants and not for babies of Asian descent, especially given the potential differences in how mothers interact with their babies.

The work carried out in this study may have profound implications for understanding the social lives of Asian-American children.  Dr. Cindy Liu, PhD directed this study.