This study examined whether infant joint attention (JA) skills
predicted social behaviors in a sample of at-risk preschool children
(n = 30) with a history of prenatal exposure to cocaine. JA
behaviors were assessed with the Early Social and Communication Scales
at 12, 15, and 18 months of age. Three classes of JA were measured:
Initiating JA (IJA), Responding to JA (RJA), and Requests. Behavioral
outcomes were measured at 36 months and included ratings of disruptive
and withdrawn behaviors and social competence. JA behaviors were
related to behavioral outcomes after controlling for language and
cognitive ability. The functionally distinct uses of JA were
differentially related to behavioral outcome. IJA negatively predicted
disruptive behaviors, whereas Requests positively predicted disruptive
behaviors. Infant RJA negatively predicted withdrawn behaviors and
positively predicted social competence. These results are interpreted
in the context of competing theories that attempt to explain
variability in the expression of JA skills in the second year of
life.This research was partially
supported by the Florida Department of Education and by a National
Research Service Award from the National Institute on Drug Abuse (1 F32
DA05971-01). Portions of this paper, which was based on a dissertation
submitted by the first author at the University of Miami, were
presented at the biennial meeting of the Society for Research in Child
Development in Albuquerque, NM, April 1999. The authors acknowledge the
efforts of Joycelyn Lee for videotape coding and the teachers and staff
at the Linda Ray Intervention Center, without whose commitment and
efforts this research would not have been possible.