Hold Me! The Importance of Physical Contact with Infants1

This paper addresses the beneficial psychological and physiological effects of
touching, carrying, and holding infants. Through an overview of research, scientific evidence is provided that
substantiates the importance of close physical contact in each of the three major states of consciousness:
awake, asleep, and crying. A historical and cross-cultural perspective is also included. Implications and
recommendations are made for child rearing by modern parents in industrialized nations. During the 1950s,
experimental psychology in the United States was dominated by an extreme school of thought called
Behaviorism. Psychologists who embraced this theory believed that all behaviors were motivated by rewards
and punishments. They assumed that babies became attached to their mothers because the mothers provided
milk, which is a reinforcing stimulus (or reward) because it alleviates the uncomfortable state of hunger.