Baron-Cohen, however, tells me that “the fact that the study hasn’t yet been replicated does not invalidate it at all. It simply means we are still awaiting replication.” One explanation he gives for why no other researchers have tried to copy it is that babies are difficult to test, which means you need large groups to get a reliable result. “Second, it appears that testing for psychological sex differences in neonates still attracts a fair amount of controversy. So some researchers may have been deterred by not wanting to walk into a potential political minefield,” he adds.
