--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: High-reactive children pay what one…" description: "\"“High-reactive children pay what one psychologist calls “alert attention” to people and things. They literally use more eye movements than others to co..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/susan-cain-647_children_high-reactive-children-pay-what-one-psyc_1555229.jpg" --- # High-reactive children pay what one psychologist calls… ![“High-reactive children pay what one psychologist calls “alert attention” to people and things. They literally use more eye movements than others to compare choices before making a decision. It’s as if they process more deeply—sometimes consciously, sometimes not—the information they take in about…” quote by Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/susan-cain-647_children_high-reactive-children-pay-what-one-psyc_1555229.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/susan-cain-647_children_high-reactive-children-pay-what-one-psyc_1555229.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/e7a/susan-cain-647_children_high-reactive-children-pay-what-one-psyc_1555229.jpg) > ““High-reactive children pay what one psychologist calls “alert attention” to people and things. They literally use more eye movements than others to compare choices before making a decision. It’s as if they process more deeply—sometimes consciously, sometimes not—the information they take in about the world.”” [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Highly reactive children exhibit heightened alertness, using more eye movements to compare options, indicating deeper, sometimes conscious, information processing. **In simple terms:** Reactive kids process information deeply. Key Takeaway Recognize and support their attentiveness. Themes development cognition attention Mood analytical empathetic Type educational psychological When to use this quote - education - parenting - therapy Key Concepts sensory processing decision making Questions to Reflect On - How can environments be optimized for such children? - What strategies help balance their alertness? A Different Perspective May lead to overstimulation. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Attention](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) [Child](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/child/) [Children](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/children/) [Focus](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/focus/) [Making A Decision](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/making-a-decision/) ## Related quotes > [“Conversely, high-reactive children may be more likely to develop into artists and writers and scientists and thinkers because their aversion to novelty causes them…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/conversely-high-reactive-children-may-be-more-likely-to-develop-into/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“The upsides of the high-reactive temperament have been documented in exciting research that scientists are only now beginning to pull together. One of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/the-upsides-of-the-high-reactive-temperament-have-been-documented-in/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“According to Jay Belsky, a leading proponent of this view and a psychology professor and child care expert at the University of London, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/according-to-jay-belsky-a-leading-proponent-of-this-view-and-a/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“High-reactive kids also tend to think and feel deeply about what they’ve noticed, and to bring an extra degree of nuance to everyday experiences.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/high-reactive-kids-also-tend-to-think-and-feel-deeply-about-what-they/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“If a high-reactive toddler breaks another child's toy by mistake, studies show, she often experiences a more intense mix of guilt and sorrow than…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/if-a-high-reactive-toddler-breaks-another-child-s-toy-by-mistake/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“high-reactive child’s ideal parent: someone who “can read your cues and respect your individuality; is warm and firm in placing demands on you without…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/high-reactive-child-s-ideal-parent-someone-who-can-read-your-cues-and/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“What scientists haven’t realized until recently is that these risk factors have an upside. In other words, the sensitivities and the strengths are a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/what-scientists-haven-t-realized-until-recently-is-that-these-risk/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [Intelligence is the door to freedom and alert attention is the mother of intelligence.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jon-kabat-zinn/intelligence-is-the-door-to-freedom-and-alert-attention-is-the-mother/) [Jon Kabat-Zinn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jon-kabat-zinn/) > [The Truth is the unknown from moment to moment, our minds must be always alert with full attention, free from prejudices, misconceptions, so it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samael-aun-weor/the-truth-is-the-unknown-from-moment-to-moment-our-minds-must-be/) [Samael Aun Weor](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samael-aun-weor/) > [“The first move was to hook her attention. “I’ll tell you something about yourself that other people probably don’t know,” I began. “People sometimes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-strauss/the-first-move-was-to-hook-her-attention-i-ll-tell-you-something/) [Neil Strauss](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-strauss/) > [“Follow my finger." He moved it around, tracking my eye movements. "Any blurred vision?" "Well I think I'm hallucinating, because I see a big…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rachel-caine/follow-my-finger-he-moved-it-around-tracking-my-eye-movements-any/) [Rachel Caine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rachel-caine/) > [“I want you with me.” Another kiss was placed on my face. “But don’t rush into making a decision. I don’t want you regretting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kylie-scott/i-want-you-with-me-another-kiss-was-placed-on-my-face-but-don-t-rush/) [Kylie Scott](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kylie-scott/) > [“No better way to avoid making a decision than burying yourself in a big fat book.” (p. 105).”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/elizabeth-bard/no-better-way-to-avoid-making-a-decision-than-burying-yourself-in-a/) [Elizabeth Bard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/elizabeth-bard/) > [I always like to take my time and examine the two candidates, see not only the two candidates but the policies they will bring…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colin-powell/i-always-like-to-take-my-time-and-examine-the-two-candidates-see-not/) [Colin Powell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colin-powell/) > [“Making a decision takes a moment, living a decision takes a life-time.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sherif-a-el-mawardy/making-a-decision-takes-a-moment-living-a-decision-takes-a-life-time/) [Sherif A. El-Mawardy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sherif-a-el-mawardy/) ## More by Susan Cain > [“Proverbs from the East: The wind howls, but the mountain remains still. Even though I make no special attempt to observe the discipline of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/proverbs-from-the-east-the-wind-howls-but-the-mountain-remains-still/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“where we fall on the introvert-extrovert spectrum. Our place on this continuum influences our choice of friends and mates, and how we make conversation,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/where-we-fall-on-the-introvert-extrovert-spectrum-our-place-on-this/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“I worry that there are people who are put in positions of authority because they’re good talkers, but they don’t have good ideas,” he…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/i-worry-that-there-are-people-who-are-put-in-positions-of-authority/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“He believes, as most of us do, that venting anger lets off steam. The “catharsis hypothesis”—that aggression builds up inside us until it’s healthily…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/he-believes-as-most-of-us-do-that-venting-anger-lets-off-steam-the/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Soft power is not limited to moral exemplars like Mahatma Gandhi. Consider, for example, the much-ballyhooed excellence of Asians in fields like math and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/soft-power-is-not-limited-to-moral-exemplars-like-mahatma-gandhi/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Events like this don't give me the sense of oneness others seem to enjoy; it's always been private occasions that make me feel connected…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/events-like-this-don-t-give-me-the-sense-of-oneness-others-seem-to/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Social anxiety disorder”—which essentially means pathological shyness—is now thought to afflict nearly one in five of us. The most recent version of the Diagnostic…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/social-anxiety-disorder-which-essentially-means-pathological-shyness/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Potential clients would walk out of Charlie’s office scared”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/potential-clients-would-walk-out-of-charlie-s-office-scared/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“So when introverts assume the observer role, as when they write novels, or contemplate unified field theory- or fall quiet at dinner parties- they’re…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/so-when-introverts-assume-the-observer-role-as-when-they-write-novels/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“Osborn’s theory had great impact, and company leaders took up brainstorming with enthusiasm. To this day, it’s common for anyone who spends time in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/osborn-s-theory-had-great-impact-and-company-leaders-took-up/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [Extroversion is an enormously appealing personality style, but we've turned it into an oppressive standard to which most of us feel we must conform.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/extroversion-is-an-enormously-appealing-personality-style-but-we-ve/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“But as the word satyagraha implies, Gandhi’s passivity was not weakness at all. It meant focusing on an ultimate goal and refusing to divert…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/but-as-the-word-satyagraha-implies-gandhi-s-passivity-was-not/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“The Extrovert Ideal has been documented in many studies, though this research has never been grouped under a single name. Talkative people, for example,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/the-extrovert-ideal-has-been-documented-in-many-studies-though-this/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [“introverts prefer to work independently, and solitude can be a catalyst to innovation. As the influential psychologist Hans Eysenck once observed, introversion “concentrates the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/introverts-prefer-to-work-independently-and-solitude-can-be-a/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) > [ “People who tend to \[suppress their negative emotions\] regularly,” concludes Grob, “might start to see the world in a more negative light.” ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/susan-cain/people-who-tend-to-suppress-their-negative-emotions-regularly/) [Susan Cain](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) [Explore all 428 Susan Cain quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/susan-cain/) ## More Attention quotes > [It appears to me that one great cause of our difference in opinion on subjects which we often discuss is that you have always…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ricardo/it-appears-to-me-that-one-great-cause-of-our-difference-in-opinion-on/) [David Ricardo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ricardo/) > [People pay far too much attention to the television and they're quite literal in some ways. At the beginning, when I was playing very…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ardal-o-hanlon/people-pay-far-too-much-attention-to-the-television-and-they-re-quite/) [Ardal O'Hanlon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ardal-o-hanlon/) > [Television, radio, social media. The 24/7 news cycle plows forward mercilessly on our desks, in our cars and in our pockets. Thousands and thousands…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-prince/television-radio-social-media-the-24-7-news-cycle-plows-forward/) [Joseph Prince](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-prince/) > [By making conscious choices in our behavior and where we focus our attention, we can transform our experience of our body, decrease our biological…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/deepak-chopra/by-making-conscious-choices-in-our-behavior-and-where-we-focus-our/) [Deepak Chopra](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/deepak-chopra/) > [Our inventions are wont to be pretty toys, which distract our attention from serious things. They are but improved means to an unimproved end.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-david-thoreau/our-inventions-are-wont-to-be-pretty-toys-which-distract-our/) [Henry David Thoreau](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-david-thoreau/) > [What people don't normally know about us is the hustle is very real, and it's sorely driven a lot by how we consider ourselves.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lzzy-hale/what-people-don-t-normally-know-about-us-is-the-hustle-is-very-real/) [Lzzy Hale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lzzy-hale/) > [For me, the term "psychotherapy" is limiting. It implies that we work with mind and emotions, but excludes the body and pays scant attention…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jed-diamond/for-me-the-term-psychotherapy-is-limiting-it-implies-that-we-work/) [Jed Diamond](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jed-diamond/) > [When you approach something to photograph it, first be still with yourself until the object of your attention affirms your presence. Then don't leave…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/minor-white/when-you-approach-something-to-photograph-it-first-be-still-with/) [Minor White](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/minor-white/) > [I'm writing about real things. Real people. Real characters. You have to believe what I write about is true or you wouldn't pay any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lou-reed/i-m-writing-about-real-things-real-people-real-characters-you-have-to/) [Lou Reed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lou-reed/) > [ I went to a mosque in Philadelphia with \[my wife\] in December 24, 1999. And we we went to this mosque in Philly, and… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahershala-ali/i-went-to-a-mosque-in-philadelphia-with-my-wife-in-december-24-1999/) [Mahershala Ali](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahershala-ali/) > [The Harvard Business Review recently had an article called 'The Human Moment,' about how to make real contact with a person at work: ...…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/daniel-goleman/the-harvard-business-review-recently-had-an-article-called-the-human/) [Daniel Goleman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/daniel-goleman/) > [Let us thank God heartily as often as we pray that we have His Spirit in us to teach us to pray. Thanksgiving will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/andy-murray/let-us-thank-god-heartily-as-often-as-we-pray-that-we-have-his-spirit/) [Andy Murray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/andy-murray/) > [Enlightened people live in very charged states of attention, with a tremendous power circuiting through them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/frederick-lenz/enlightened-people-live-in-very-charged-states-of-attention-with-a/) [Frederick Lenz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/frederick-lenz/) > [We must have a welfare system that we can afford, which will mean giving greater attention to directing the welfare program toward its primary…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-portillo/we-must-have-a-welfare-system-that-we-can-afford-which-will-mean/) [Michael Portillo](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-portillo/) > [The director's job should give you a sense of music without drawing attention to itself.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/taylor-hackford/the-director-s-job-should-give-you-a-sense-of-music-without-drawing/) [Taylor Hackford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/taylor-hackford/) [Browse all 10,153 Attention quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/attention/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“High-reactive children pay what one psychologist calls “alert attention” to people and things. 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