Object processing in the infant: lessons from neuroscience

Abstract

Object identification is a fundamental cognitive capacity that forms the basis for more complex thought and behavior. The adult cortex is organized into functionally distinct visual object-processing pathways that mediate this ability. Insights into the origin of these pathways have begun to emerge through the use of neuroimaging techniques with infant populations. The outcome of this work supports the view that, from the early days of life, object-processing pathways are organized in a way that resembles that of the adult. At the same time, theoretically important changes in patterns of cortical activation are observed during the first year. These findings lead to a new understanding of the cognitive and neural architecture that supports infants’ emerging object-processing capacities.

On perception as the basis for object concepts: a critical analysis

“…Supporting this hypothesis, Wilcox and Biondi (2015) determined that babies of 4½ months of age can use shape differences between objects to individuate them, but not chromatic differences that become accessible towards 11½ months of age. Likewise, there is evidence that, up to at least 4 years of age, children do not develop an ability to establish extent similar to that of adults (Huttenlocher et al, 2002).…”

“…In this fashion, Cohen and Strauss (1979) indicate that the first concepts would form around 30 weeks of age as a result of the discrimination of visual stimuli of female faces. In the same line, Wilcox and Biondi (2015) proposed that infants aged 3½ months show sensitivity to perceptual discontinuities in speed and path of motion and that 4½ months rely on the perception of shape differences to individuate objects. However, other concepts not linked to perception such as concepts about spatial relationships and object functions would emerge much later, when children are 10 months old (in the first case) (Horst et al, 2005) or two or more years of age (in the second case) (Mandler, 2008a;Rakison & Butterworth, 1998).…”

Four‐month‐old infants individuate and track simple tools following functional demonstrations

“…wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/desc about what features objects should have when revealed (e.g., Kibbe & Leslie, 2011;Wilcox & Biondi, 2015;Xu & Carey, 1996). The present research explored individuation and identity tracking and examined the origins of these abilities in very young infants.…”

“…This expectation would depend on at least three abilities: (a) individuation , the ability to determine that two objects were in the box; (b) identity tracking , the ability to track these objects across events and hence predict that two objects would fall out of the box; and (c) re‐identification , the ability to specify what features these objects would have. Developmental research has shown that each of these abilities can pose difficulties for infants: Under certain conditions, infants fail to correctly individuate objects, they fail to correctly track objects from event to event, and they have limited expectations about what features objects should have when revealed (e.g., Kibbe & Leslie, ; Wilcox & Biondi, ; Xu & Carey, ). The present research explored individuation and identity tracking and examined the origins of these abilities in very young infants.…”

“… In simplified IIT tasks, positive results have been obtained even when infants assign the two occluded objects to the same category, as long as the objects differ in featural properties infants have learned to attend to in occlusion events (e.g., Wilcox, ; Wilcox & Biondi, ; Wilcox & Chapa, ; Wilcox & Schweinle, ). The present research focused on the more challenging standard IIT task, however, because understanding why categorical information is critical for success in this task is likely to yield important insights into the early development of individuation and identity tracking. …”