Development of Self-Awareness

Children start to show recognition of self at around 18 months.

How do we know this?

Research has shown that if you show photos of different children to a child who's around 18 months old, he/she is able to accurately select a photo of self from a set of 3 photos. They are also more likely to copy the actions of self rather than of another infant when watching videos of each.

But the most common way to tell if your child has developed self-awareness is by administering the famous “Rouge” Test (Anderson, 1972; Lewis & Brooks-Gunn, 1979).

You can even conduct this test yourself in the comfort of your own home =)

Do-It-Yourself Psychology Experiment: The "Rouge" Test

Step 1: Dab some lipstick on your child's nose

Step 2: Bring your child in front of a mirror

 Remember, don't do anything that will hint to the child that there is something on his/her nose!

Step 3: Observe your child's reaction

If your child makes a conscious attempt to touch the nose to either wipe the lipstick mark away or shows some indication that it is there, then your child has developed self-awareness =)

This development of self-awareness happens typically around 18 months old (plus, minus).

Try it yourself! You can be your own psychologist =)