The effects of type of instruction, animacy cues, and dimensionality of objects on the shape bias in 3‐ to 6‐year‐old children

Abstract

Robust evidence exists for the shape bias, or children's tendency to extend novel names and categorize objects more readily on the basis of shape than on other object features. However, issues remain about the conditions that affect the shape bias and its importance as a linguistic device. In this research, we examined how type of instruction (common noun naming, proper noun naming, same kind, and goes with), animacy of objects (animate, inanimate), and dimensionality of objects (two‐dimensional, three‐dimensional) affect the shape bias in 3‐ to 6‐year‐old children. Overall, all children showed strong use of the shape bias with categorization (same kind, goes with) instructions, the former in line with the shape‐as‐cue theory. Additionally, the shape bias was quite robust in the inanimate condition, regardless of type of instruction or dimensionality of objects. However, in the animate condition, a proper noun naming instruction coupled with an animate object cue reduced the shape bias across both two‐ and three‐dimensional objects. Implications of these findings are presented. Highlights This study assessed the “shape bias,” a linguistic strategy young children routinely use when confronted with the task of extending a novel name from one object to another. Novel name extension and categorization tasks were used in this study. Shape bias was affected by the type of instructions, animacy of objects, and dimensionality of objects.

Children prefer pattern over shape during complex categorization

“…To prove this assumption, we first designed a simple categorization task (Experiment 1a). In the task, preschool children preferentially selected shape‐shared objects over color‐ or texture‐shared objects, replicating the shape preference found in previous studies (Davidson et al, 2018; Diesendruck & Bloom, 2003; Graham & Diesendruck, 2010; Graham et al, 2004; Landau et al, 1988; Ward et al, 1991).…”

“…The shape preference tends to manifest more robustly with age, especially between 2 and 6 years of age (Augier & Thibaut, 2013; Horst & Twomey, 2013; Jones et al, 1991; Samuelson & Smith, 1999). Shape preference is not only observed in word‐learning tasks, but it is also broadly observed in various types of categorization tasks (Davidson, Rainey, Vanegas, & Hilvert, 2018; Diesendruck & Bloom, 2003; Graham & Diesendruck, 2010; Graham, Kilbreath, & Welder, 2004; Kimura, Hunley, & Namy, 2018; Landau et al, 1988; Ward, Becker, Hass, & Vela, 1991). For example, in the study by Diesendruck and Bloom (2003), children showed the shape preference when they were asked to select an object of the same category as the target object.…”

“…They were asked to select the testing object that is the same as the target. Based on previous studies (Davidson et al, 2018;Diesendruck & Bloom, 2003;Graham & Diesendruck, 2010;Kimura et al, 2018;Landau et al, 1988), we expected that children would more frequently choose the shape-match items than color-or texture-match items.…”

“…In brief, previous studies have suggested that preschool children, especially toddlers, classify objects primarily on the basis of perceptual characteristics, such as shape (Davidson et al, 2018; Diesendruck & Bloom, 2003; Graham & Diesendruck, 2010; Graham et al, 2004; Kimura et al, 2018; Landau et al, 1988; Ward et al, 1991). However, the conclusions of these studies may be invalid because they have ignored another perceptual dimension, namely, pattern, which is the visual cue of knowing the material or structural properties of objects.…”

“…We aimed to investigate whether children would still attend to shape when confronted with pattern‐match items. In children's early conceptual system, shape is an important cue for children to grasp the taxonomic category of an entity (Davidson et al, 2018; Diesendruck & Bloom, 2003; Graham & Diesendruck, 2010; Kimura et al, 2018; Landau et al, 1988; Ward et al, 1991). Similarly, children's tactile perception of the texture of objects and their visual perception of patterns associated with the texture facilitate their understanding of the physical properties and structural mechanisms of objects (Augier & Thibaut, 2013; Booth et al, 2005; Graham & Diesendruck, 2010; Welder & Graham, 2001).…”