When we pick up a crying baby and cuddle her close, she stops crying. Why? How important is contact for a developing infant? What purpose does the contact serve? In the early part of the 20th century, psychologists assumed that all babies needed to survive was to have their internal biological needs met – hunger, thirst, and temperature regulation. External needs, including love, affection, and social contact, were considered secondary. According to this view, babies liked being held by their mothers because they had come to associate mom with the ability to satisfy their primary hunger needs. But is this true? We continue to hear stories, even today, of babies who fail to thrive in orphanages because they were not held and cuddled, even though their physical needs were met.