Infants transfer nonobvious properties from pictures to real-world objects

Developmental trajectories of picture-based object representations during the first year of life

Experience with an object's photograph changes 9-month-olds' preference for the referent object, confirming they can represent objects from pictures. However, picture-based representations appear weaker than object-based representations. The current study's first objective was to investigate age differences in object recognition memory after familiarization with objects' pictures. The second objective was to test whether age differences in object permanence sensitivity with picture-based representations match those found with object-based representations, whereby 7-month-olds search more for familiar hidden objects but 11-month-olds search more for novel ones. Six- and 11-month-olds were familiarized with an object's photo and tested on their representation of the real object by comparing their reaching for it versus a novel object. Objects were visible under conditions testing recognition memory and hidden under conditions testing object permanence. Like 9-month-olds, 6- and 11-month-olds preferred novelty with visible objects, showing early object recognition after picture familiarization, as well as developmental continuity. Unlike 9-month-olds, who switched to preferring familiarity with hidden objects, 6- and 11-month-olds switched to null preference. This pattern fails to match 7- and 11-month-olds' hidden-object preferences after familiarization with real objects, revealing discontinuity in sensitivity to object permanence after picture familiarization, and suggesting that picture-based representations are weaker than object-based ones.

Eleven-Month-Olds Link Sound Properties With Animal Categories

We examined 11-month-olds' tendency to generalize properties to category members, an ability that may contribute to the inductive reasoning abilities observed in later developmental periods. Across three experiments, we tested 11-month-olds' (N = 113) generalization of properties within the cat and dog categories. In each experiment, infants were familiarized to animal-sound pairings (i.e., dog barking; cat meowing) and tested on this association and the generalization of the sound property to new members of the familiarized categories. After familiarization with a single exemplar, 11-month-olds generalized the sound to new category members that were both highly similar and less similar to the familiarized animal (Experiment 1). When familiarized with mismatched animal-sound pairings (Experiment 2; i.e., dog meowing; cat barking), 11-month-olds did not learn or generalize the sound properties, suggesting that infants have pre-existing expectations about the links between the characteristic sound properties and the animal categories. When familiarized with unfamiliar sound-animal pairings (Experiment 3; i.e., dog-unfamiliar sound), 11-month-olds linked the animals with the novel sounds but did not generalize to new category members. Taken together, these findings highlight the conditions under which young infants generalize properties from one exemplar to other category members.

Funcionamientos Inferenciales en Niños Caminadores: un Acercamiento al Microdesarrollo en una Tarea de Resolución de Problemas

Se exponen los resultados de un estudio sobre la emergencia de la capacidad de niños caminadores para resolver problemas, centrado en la manera como niños de 25 meses de edad acceden a la comprensión de un problema de compuertas, cuya solución les exige funcionamientos inferenciales distintos. Se aplicó una metodología microgenética, en la cual se utiliza una situación de resolución de problemas (SRP), en tres ensayos de una misma sesión de observación. El análisis se dirige a las variaciones interindividuales, a partir de las cuales se identifican tendencias en los desempeños de los niños. Los resultados ponen en evidencia la capacidad resolutoria de niños caminadores, manifestada en acciones sistemáticas, organizadas, automotivadas y en el uso de procesos inferenciales complejos.

The Role of Book Features in Young Children's Transfer of Information from Picture Books to Real-World Contexts

Picture books are an important source of new language, concepts, and lessons for young children. A large body of research has documented the nature of parent-child interactions during shared book reading. A new body of research has begun to investigate the features of picture books that support children's learning and transfer of that information to the real world. In this paper, we discuss how children's symbolic development, analogical reasoning, and reasoning about fantasy may constrain their ability to take away content information from picture books. We then review the nascent body of findings that has focused on the impact of picture book features on children's learning and transfer of words and letters, science concepts, problem solutions, and morals from picture books. In each domain of learning we discuss how children's development may interact with book features to impact their learning. We conclude that children's ability to learn and transfer content from picture books can be disrupted by some book features and research should directly examine the interaction between children's developing abilities and book characteristics on children's learning.

"I use it when I see it": The role of development and experience in Deaf and hearing children's understanding of iconic gesture

Iconicity is prevalent in gesture and in sign languages, yet the degree to which children recognize and leverage iconicity for early language learning is unclear. In Experiment 1 of the current study, we presented sign-naïve 3-, 4- and 5-year-olds (n=87) with iconic shape gestures and no additional scaffolding to ask whether children can spontaneously map iconic gestures to their referents. Four- and five-year-olds, but not three-year-olds, recognized the referents of iconic shape gestures above chance. Experiment 2 asked whether preschoolers (n=93) show an advantage in fast-mapping iconic gestures compared to arbitrary ones. We found that iconicity played a significant role in supporting 4- and 5-year-olds' ability to learn new gestures presented in an explicit pedagogical context, and a lesser role in 3-year-olds' learning. Using similar tasks in Experiment 3, we found that Deaf preschoolers (n=41) exposed to American Sign Language showed a similar pattern of recognition and learning but starting at an earlier age, suggesting that learning a language with rich iconicity may lead to earlier use of iconicity. These results suggest that sensitivity to iconicity is shaped by experience, and while not fundamental to the earliest stages of language development, is a useful tool once children unlock these form-meaning relationships.

Toddlers' word learning and transfer from electronic and print books

Transfer from symbolic media to the real world can be difficult for young children. A sample of 73 toddlers aged 17 to 23months were read either an electronic book displayed on a touchscreen device or a traditional print book in which a novel object was paired with a novel label. Toddlers in both conditions learned the label within the context of the book. However, only those who read the traditional format book generalized and transferred the label to other contexts. An older group of 28 toddlers aged 24 to 30months did generalize and transfer from the electronic book. Across ages, those children who primarily used screens to watch prerecorded video at home transferred less from the electronic book than those with more diverse home media experiences.

Reality check: Prior exposure facilitates picture book imitation by 15-month-old infants

We examined whether 15-month-olds could imitate a novel action sequence from a picture book, and whether or not pre-exposure to the objects before reading the book would facilitate imitation. We found that infants only imitated from a picture book above baseline when they had previously interacted with the objects.

Do cavies talk? The effect of anthropomorphic picture books on children's knowledge about animals

Many books for young children present animals in fantastical and unrealistic ways, such as wearing clothes, talking and engaging in human-like activities. This research examined whether anthropomorphism in children's books affects children's learning and conceptions of animals, by specifically assessing the impact of depictions (a bird wearing clothes and reading a book) and language (bird described as talking and as having human intentions). In Study 1, 3-, 4-, and 5-year-old children saw picture books featuring realistic drawings of a novel animal. Half of the children also heard factual, realistic language, while the other half heard anthropomorphized language. In Study 2, we replicated the first study using anthropomorphic illustrations of real animals. The results show that the language used to describe animals in books has an effect on children's tendency to attribute human-like traits to animals, and that anthropomorphic storybooks affect younger children's learning of novel facts about animals. These results indicate that anthropomorphized animals in books may not only lead to less learning but also influence children's conceptual knowledge of animals.