MIAM Team Master 2 Stage

How do we learn to eat and how are our eating behaviors formed during early childhood? Some taste preferences—such as the tendency to like sweet and salty tastes and to reject bitter and sour tastes—are present from birth and serve to guide young children toward foods that are both safe and nutritious. However, these few preferences alone do not explain the great complexity and diversity of human diets. During the first years of life, young children must learn what is edible in their environment, and this learning is particularly complex. Research on food learning shows that our knowledge about food is largely acquired through observation and imitation of more experienced individuals. However, most studies have been conducted on children aged 3-4 years and older, and research on infants and young children remains particularly rare.

However, it is during the first years of life that dietary diversification, that is, the introduction of new foods into the diet, takes place, and this period of development is therefore crucial for learning and shaping eating behaviors. 

In this context, the objective of this 6-month internship is to examine how infants and young children learn to eat with the help of their social partners. More specifically, drawing on robust approaches from cognitive and developmental psychology (e.g., eye tracking and looking time measurement), we will examine who infants learn best from and whether food learning is selective, i.e., whether it differs from learning processes in other domains (e.g., object learning)

The intern's responsibilities will include participating in the experimental design process, conducting tests with French-speaking infants aged 12 to 14 months, and performing statistical analysis of the results.

This internship is paid in accordance with current legislation, with the possibility of home working.

From February 2026

 Camille RIOUX 

 Master's student in Psychology/Behavioral Sciences/Cognitive Sciences

 Dynamic and motivated candidate.

 Candidate fluent in French (to interact with study participants)

 Knowledge of eating behaviors is an asset.