His research leads him to conclusions concerning the origins of consciousness, summarized in a book for the general reader, The Cradle of Thought.
Hobson throws further light on this basic claim by examining what occurs in cases where, for genetic or environmental reasons, infants are denied the opportunity to investigate intersubjective relationships.
To achieve a rare vantage point on human development without unethical experimentation, Hobson examines cases of autism, Down syndrome, congenital blindness and extreme social deprivation (for which statistically significant numbers of orphans rescued from Nicolae Ceauşescu's Romanian orphanages were available).
On the other hand, Hobson demonstrates that a hard-wired emotional connection is crucial for an infant to start the process of intersubjective learning.
Edward Skidelsky suggests that Hobson fatally overlooks the fact that people with autism learn to speak (see External Links, below).