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Early developmental origins of social knowledge

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  28 May 2026

Angela C. Incollingo Rodriguez ,
Richard B. Lopez ,
Benjamin C. Nephew Open the ORCID record for Benjamin C. Nephew [Opens in a new window]  and
Christopher Murgatroyd
Angela C. Incollingo Rodriguez*
Affiliation:
Department of Social Science and Policy Studies, Psychological Science Program, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA, USA acrodriguez@wpi.edu rlopez1@wpi.edu
Richard B. Lopez
Affiliation:
Department of Social Science and Policy Studies, Psychological Science Program, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA, USA acrodriguez@wpi.edu rlopez1@wpi.edu
Benjamin C. Nephew
Affiliation:
Department of Biology and Biotechnology, Neuroscience Program, Worcester Polytechnic Institute, Worcester, MA, USA bcnephew@aol.com
Christopher Murgatroyd
Affiliation:
Department of Life Sciences, Manchester Metropolitan University, Manchester, UK c.murgatroyd@mmu.ac.uk
*
*Corresponding author.
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Abstract

In addition to core knowledge, the prenatal environment, parental care, and early life experience play substantial roles in the establishment of social cognition. Given the evolutionary importance of early life care in humans and mammals in general, there are innate reward and stress based neuroendocrine mechanisms that are critical to maternal infant bonding as well as later social behavior.

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Type
Open Peer Commentary
Information
Behavioral and Brain Sciences , Volume 49 , 2026 , e45
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Copyright
© The Author(s), 2026. Published by Cambridge University Press

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