ABSTRACT
Imitation is viewed as a cognitive as well as a social phenomenon, functional in maintaining social communication. This chapter discusses the trends in the early development of imitation. Miller and Dollard (1941) were among the first to study imitation experimentally with children. Their account of imitative behavior was given in terms of behavior-contingency learning process, based on the paradigms of instrumental learning. According to Jean Piaget's (1946) approach, imitation is a manifestation of the child's intelligence; the development of imitation is closely related to cognitive development during the sensorimotor period. Piaget claims that the limits of each stage in the development of imitation are set by the infant's cognitive capacity at the time. The origin of imitation, according to Piaget, is to be found in the repetition of the reflex, which becomes a circular reaction.
