Your baby has been interested in people since they were born. As they are awake and alert for longer and their vision develops, they will notice and respond to their reflection when looking in a mirror.
While your baby will be interested in their reflection, at this point they will not fully understand that the baby in the mirror is them.
You might notice they seem to show more interest in the baby in the mirror than in other babies and children that they see. It is thought that they might respond differently to their reflection than to another baby because they notice that the baby responds in a way that they do not expect. [1]
Much research about children and mirrors focuses on the point when children can show that they know the reflection in the mirror is themselves. This point is often linked to their developing self-awareness and a recognition that their reflection shows how others see them. [2]
However, there are questions about if this recognition that your child will experience in the future is the result of a gradual progression or a sudden development. You will notice that your baby is interested in looking in a mirror and that as they do this they might smile, babble, or move more.
Researchers found that babies seemed to respond to a video of a baby mimicking their actions differently to their own reflection. This suggests that your baby is gradually becoming aware that the reflection in the mirror is themselves, rather than this being a sudden development that will happen in the future. [2] Whilst your baby might not fully understand that their reflection shows them how they look to others they are already on the journey to self-recognition.
The development of self-awareness is explained by Rochat, who outlines six levels of self-awareness [3]:
Level 0 - no self-awareness, at this level an individual is not even aware of the presence of the mirror, seeing this as part of the world rather than a reflection. It is thought that even at birth your baby will have had some self-awareness, so they have levels of self-awareness corresponding to level 1.
The examples given at this level are linked to animals such as birds flying into a mirror or moments of absence when we might briefly think our reflection is another person.
Level 1 - differention, at this level the individual recognises that the mirror shows something different and notices the uniqueness of this experience.
Level 2 - situation, at this point your baby is beginning to make a link between their movements and the reflection, so there is some recognition that the reflection is linked to them. When your baby responds to their reflection it is likely that they are showing awareness at this level.
Level 3 - Identification, this is the point when your baby shows they connect the reflection with themselves, this might be through a comment of by an action such as touching a mark on their face.
Level 4 - Permanence, your baby will, as their understanding develops, understand that their reflection might look different at different times, but it is still them. They understand that their reflection might sometimes change. They might wear different clothes; they might grow or have a haircut but despite these changes in appearance they maintain a consistent sense of self.
Level 5 - Self-consciousness or ‘meta’ self-awareness, your child will as they develop understand that other people have an opinion about them. They recognise themselves both in terms of their own understanding and that of others. An older child might use a mirror to explore how they look to others, trying out facial expressions or movements.
Your baby will develop great levels of self-awareness through their movement and exploration of themselves and through their interactions with you and others. Rochet suggests that as adults, we move between these levels of self-awareness according to the activities in which we are involved. Even as your baby develops greater levels of self-awareness, the early levels of awareness continue to be important throughout their lives.
Your baby will learn more about themselves through their movements and through other people's response to and interactions with them. They will look at themselves and at others in mirrors and might enjoy mirror play.
[1] Addyman, C (2020) The laughing baby: The extraordinary science behind what makes babies happy. London: Unbound.
[2] Rochat, P. & Striano, T. (2002). Who’s in the mirror? Self-other discrimination in specular images by four and nine-month-old infants. Child Development, 73(1), 35-46.
[3] Rochat, P. (2003). Five levels of self-awareness as they unfold early in life. Consciousness and Cognition, 12, 17-731.