In a Study Reported in the November 2007 Issue of Nature

Essay

In a study reported in the November 2007 issue of Nature, researchers investigated whether infants take into account an individual's actions towards others in evaluating that individual as appealing or aversive, perhaps laying the foundation for social interaction (Hamlin, Wynn, and Bloom, 2007). In one component of the study, 10-month-old infants were shown a "climber" character (a piece of wood with "google" eyes glued onto it) that could not make it up a hill in two tries. Then they were alternately shown two scenarios for the climber's next try, one where the climber was pushed to the top of the hill by another character ("helper") and one where the climber was pushed back down the hill by another character ("hinderer"). The infant was alternately shown these two scenarios several times. Then the child was presented with both pieces of wood (the helper and the hinderer) and asked to pick one to play with. The researchers found that 14 of the 16 infants chose the helper over the hinderer.
-Explain the relevance of this probability calculation to the research question of whether infants have a preference for the helper toy over the hinderer toy. Also summarize the conclusion that you would draw, and explain your reasoning.