Abstract
This study aimed to determine the influence of imitation on their relationships with others among young children in their formative expression and clarify the changes in individual relationships with their environment due to imitation in late childhood. We analyzed by observing the play of two older girls for one year and identifying three factors. (1) Infants transform and develop their own schemas by imitating valuable objects using representations derived from their experiences. (2) Infants learn values from others through imitation and build relationships with them by accepting them. Simultaneously, by being accepted by others, they develop an empathetic sense of self-affirmation and move toward self-expression in secure environments. (3)The repetition of the process of expression through mutual imitation has the potential to create new values for the group. Therefore, imitation in late infancy was considered to have the function of jointly expressing new values created in the context of relationships.
