Génie des bébés

What do babies think? How do their brains develop during the first two years of life? Over the past forty years, our understanding of early development and its disorders has evolved considerably. The baby is seen as a being in the making, protected but also stimulated by their interactions with their parents. However, their sensitivity can quickly be impaired if their relational needs are not met, or if the shared joy in the relationship is neither frequent nor lasting. In this respect, the monitoring of premature babies has much to teach us about ways of fostering resilience in parent- child relationships. Parents and childcare professionals need to be aware of new ways to prevent problems, intervene early and understand why it is essential to foster closeness and synchronisation between babies and their parents. 'The significance of Antoine Guedeney's contribution lies in having made it possible to observe and assess how the mental world of a pre-verbal baby can only develop if there is an 'other'--someone who attracts the baby and whom the baby loves.' Boris Cyrulnik