Experience-based and on-line categorization of objects in early infancy

Abstract

What processes do infants employ in categorizing? Infants might categorize on line as they encounter category-related entities; alternatively, infants might depend on prior experience with entities in formulating categories. These alternatives were tested in forty-four 5-month-olds. Infants who were familiarized in the laboratory with a category of never-before-seen objects subsequently treated novel objects of the same category as familiar-they categorized on line-just as did infants who were exposed to objects from the same category at home for 2 months leading to their laboratory assessment of object categorization. Infants with home experience also recognized novel category objects as familiar from the outset-that is, prior experience with category exemplars was brought to bear in laboratory tasks.

Figure 1

Examples of the two categories A and B.

Figure 2

Mean examination time (in s ± 1 SEM) at the start of familiarization, at the end of familiarization, for the test of the familiar-category novel exemplar, and for the test of the novel-category novel exemplar. (A) Home Experience condition. (B) No Home Experience condition.