Infant Studies Of Perceptual Development

Question 1

Why have neonates been studied?

Answer 1

To establish whether perceptual abilities are learnt or innate

Question 2

In an essay, how would you use ethical and methodological issues of using neonates?

Answer 2

To criticise individual infant studies

Question 3

Briefly, what are the methodological and ethical issues of using neonates?

Answer 3

Physical and cognitive constraints
Can’t understand instructions
Not causing them harm

Question 4

Explain how neonates constraints affect the validity of studies…

Answer 4

They have physical and cognitive constraints meaning they cannot fully demonstrate their reactions. For example, due to their bones still developing they don’t have proper movement to suggest they agree with something or cannot understand or respond to instructions. We can only infer what they perceive.

Question 5

Explain ethical issues when using neonates…

Answer 5

Permission must be obtained from their parents
It is important they do not endure and physical or emotional harm, a neonate cannot be coerced into participating and if they are distressed they must be calmed down

Question 6

What are some techniques used to study neonates?

Answer 6

Heart and breathing rate

Eye-movement monitoring

Question 7

How is heart and breathing rate used to assess neonates perceptual abilities?

Answer 7

If there are changes in these rates when stimuli is presented it is assumed the baby can distinguish between them

Question 8

How is eye-movement monitoring used to assess neonates perceptual abilities?

Answer 8

If the infant appears to only focus on certain features of stimuli it suggests the whole stimuli cannot be perceived

Question 9

What are neonates?

Answer 9

New born infants

Question 10

What is the nativist view?

Answer 10

The view that we have an innate ability to perceive the world.

Question 11

What studies are relevant to infants depth perception?

Answer 11

Gibson and walker
Gibson
Campos et al

Question 12

What were Gibson and Walkers findings?

Answer 12

92% of babies would not cross ‘the drop’; a box which was half chequered pattern and half glass to mimic a drop.

Question 13

How old were the children in Gibson and Walkers study?

Answer 13

6-14months

Question 14

What do Gibson and Walkers findings suggest?

Answer 14

That perceptions is innate because the young babies did not crawl across the drop from straying they recognised the change in height.

Question 15

Why have Gibson and Walkers findings been criticised and that they do not demonstrate perception is innate?

Answer 15

Because the children were not neonates, they had had several months to develop an experience of depth through being crawled and carried ect so they do not suggest perception is innate.

Question 16

What have some psychologists suggested is an alternative explanation for the babies behaviour?

Answer 16

That the mothers at the otherside of the drop showed subtle anxiety, their facial expressions and artificial environment meant it lacked ecological validity and probably prevented the babies from crossing

Other research has found when the mothers were positive the babies crossed

Question 17

What studies support Gibson and Walks findings?

Answer 17

Gibson

Campos et al

Question 18

What were Gibson’s findings?

Answer 18

She found animals such as fouls and lambs who could walk from birth did not walk across the drop. These animals were no older than 24 hours old.

Question 19

Why can Gibson’s study be criticised?

Answer 19

Animals cannot be generalised to humans for two reasons, first of all because we have a different biological make up. Second of all, humans are carried around for many months after birth so perceptual ability is less of a necessity so we may not have it. Whereas it is a necessity for animals.

Question 20

What were campos et als findings?

Answer 20

He noticed a difference in the heart rates of babies when on the deep and shallow side suggesting that could distinguish between the two, supporting the argument that perception is innate.

Question 21

What debates are relevant to Gibson’s study?

Answer 21

Animal debate

Nature nurture debate

Question 22

Explain the nurture/nature debate…CHECK THIS

Answer 22

It would appear that perceptual abilities are innate and support the nature side of the argument. Newborn do babies recognise depth, but whether perceptual abilities are innate is debatable. It is most likely with have a very basic understanding of depth which increases through our experiences.

Question 23

What is size constancy?

Answer 23

As you look at an object, an image of it forms on the retina, allowing it to be seen. The closer an image is, the larger the image it creates on the retina. However, when the brain interprets the retinal image, it is able to identify the object as being closer rather than larger.

Question 24

What were bowers findings?

Answer 24

He found babies could discriminate between a cube they had been conditioned to respond to and another larger cube when the cube had been moved so that the new cube was the size of the original cube on their retina

Question 25

What do bowers findings suggest?

Answer 25

They they understood the original cube had moved further away and not become smaller showing that dude constancy is innate

Question 26

What were Kaye and Bower’s findings?

Answer 26

That one day old babies could match the shape they could feel in their mouth with a similar image on the screen, illustrating they had cross model transfer.

Question 27

What do Kaye and Bower’s findings suggest?

Answer 27

That they had shape constancy because the babies were so young, suggesting the ability is innate

Question 28

What were the problems with Bower’s study?

Answer 28

The babies were old enough to have had a previous experience of depth cues and size constancy so the results don’t fully determine if the size constancy is innate or learnt.
A subjective measurement was also used, the results were recorded by when the baby half turned its head. This could be easily misinterpreted and is open to investigator bias because they are looking for a particular movement to get certain results