... in which no member was currently in treatment and in which each family contained at ... Resea... more ... in which no member was currently in treatment and in which each family contained at ... Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC; Spitzer, Endicott, & Robins, 1977) for alcoholism or depression or presented ... in their early 40s, married for over 15 years, and had approximately 3 children. ...
Abstract Three studies explored how infants parse a stream of motion into distinct actions. Resul... more Abstract Three studies explored how infants parse a stream of motion into distinct actions. Results show that infants (a) can perceptually discriminate different actions performed by a puppet and (b) can individuate and enumerate heterogeneous sequences of such actions (eg, jump-fall-jump) when the actions are separated by brief motionless pauses, but (c) are not able to individuate such actions when embedded within a continuous stream of motion. Combined with previous research showing that infants can individuate homogeneous ...
In the first few years of life, children become increasingly sensitive to the significance of a v... more In the first few years of life, children become increasingly sensitive to the significance of a variety of symbolic artifacts. An extensive body of research has explored very young children's ability to use symbol-based information as a guide to current reality. In one common task, for example, children watch as a miniature toy is hidden in a scale model, and are then asked to retrieve a larger version of the toy from the corresponding place in the room itself. Two-and-a-half-year-old children perform very poorly in most versions of this task. Their most common error is to perseverate; that is, they search again at the location where the toy was last hidden. Two studies examined the degree to which 21/2-year-olds’ high rate of perseveration and poor performance stem from problems with inhibitory control. Results showed that problems with inhibitory control contribute very little to 21/2-year-old children's difficulty with the task. Instead, the results confirm young children's great difficulty appreciating and exploiting symbol–referent relations.
Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at... more Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at preschoolers' fantasy/reality differentiation. We employed a new measure of fantasy/reality differentiation-a property attribution task-in which children were questioned regarding the properties of both real and fantastical entities. We also modified the standard forced-choice categorization task (into real/fantastical) to include a 'not sure' option, thus allowing children to express uncertainty. Finally, we assessed the relation between individual levels of fantasy orientation and fantasy/reality differentiation. Results suggest that children have a more developed appreciation of the boundary between fantasy and reality than is often supposed.
This experiment tested whether children's insight into a difficult symbolic relation could be inc... more This experiment tested whether children's insight into a difficult symbolic relation could be increased by explicitly emphasizing the intentionality surrounding the artifact's creation and use. Specifically, I explicitly emphasized (a) the adult's intent to communicate information via the artifact and (b) the artifact's intentional origins and intended function. Both 36-and 30-month-olds showed significantly higher levels of insight compared to a control condition. The results suggest that by their 3rd year, children's sensitivity to intentionality can contribute to their symbolic understanding and development.
Surface similarity generally promotes reasoning by analogy and physical similarity has been shown... more Surface similarity generally promotes reasoning by analogy and physical similarity has been shown to have a powerful positive effect on very young children's use of a scale model as a source of information about another space. The research reported here investigated 2 1/2-...
Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at... more Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at preschoolers' fantasy/reality differentiation. We employed a new measure of fantasy/reality differentiation-a property attribution task-in which children were questioned regarding the properties of both real and fantastical entities. We also modified the standard forced-choice categorization task (into real/fantastical) to include a 'not sure' option, thus allowing children to express uncertainty. Finally, we assessed the relation between individual levels of fantasy orientation and fantasy/reality differentiation. Results suggest that children have a more developed appreciation of the boundary between fantasy and reality than is often supposed.
... in which no member was currently in treatment and in which each family contained at ... Resea... more ... in which no member was currently in treatment and in which each family contained at ... Research Diagnostic Criteria (RDC; Spitzer, Endicott, & Robins, 1977) for alcoholism or depression or presented ... in their early 40s, married for over 15 years, and had approximately 3 children. ...
Abstract Three studies explored how infants parse a stream of motion into distinct actions. Resul... more Abstract Three studies explored how infants parse a stream of motion into distinct actions. Results show that infants (a) can perceptually discriminate different actions performed by a puppet and (b) can individuate and enumerate heterogeneous sequences of such actions (eg, jump-fall-jump) when the actions are separated by brief motionless pauses, but (c) are not able to individuate such actions when embedded within a continuous stream of motion. Combined with previous research showing that infants can individuate homogeneous ...
In the first few years of life, children become increasingly sensitive to the significance of a v... more In the first few years of life, children become increasingly sensitive to the significance of a variety of symbolic artifacts. An extensive body of research has explored very young children's ability to use symbol-based information as a guide to current reality. In one common task, for example, children watch as a miniature toy is hidden in a scale model, and are then asked to retrieve a larger version of the toy from the corresponding place in the room itself. Two-and-a-half-year-old children perform very poorly in most versions of this task. Their most common error is to perseverate; that is, they search again at the location where the toy was last hidden. Two studies examined the degree to which 21/2-year-olds’ high rate of perseveration and poor performance stem from problems with inhibitory control. Results showed that problems with inhibitory control contribute very little to 21/2-year-old children's difficulty with the task. Instead, the results confirm young children's great difficulty appreciating and exploiting symbol–referent relations.
Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at... more Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at preschoolers' fantasy/reality differentiation. We employed a new measure of fantasy/reality differentiation-a property attribution task-in which children were questioned regarding the properties of both real and fantastical entities. We also modified the standard forced-choice categorization task (into real/fantastical) to include a 'not sure' option, thus allowing children to express uncertainty. Finally, we assessed the relation between individual levels of fantasy orientation and fantasy/reality differentiation. Results suggest that children have a more developed appreciation of the boundary between fantasy and reality than is often supposed.
This experiment tested whether children's insight into a difficult symbolic relation could be inc... more This experiment tested whether children's insight into a difficult symbolic relation could be increased by explicitly emphasizing the intentionality surrounding the artifact's creation and use. Specifically, I explicitly emphasized (a) the adult's intent to communicate information via the artifact and (b) the artifact's intentional origins and intended function. Both 36-and 30-month-olds showed significantly higher levels of insight compared to a control condition. The results suggest that by their 3rd year, children's sensitivity to intentionality can contribute to their symbolic understanding and development.
Surface similarity generally promotes reasoning by analogy and physical similarity has been shown... more Surface similarity generally promotes reasoning by analogy and physical similarity has been shown to have a powerful positive effect on very young children's use of a scale model as a source of information about another space. The research reported here investigated 2 1/2-...
Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at... more Young children are often thought to confuse fantasy and reality. This study took a second look at preschoolers' fantasy/reality differentiation. We employed a new measure of fantasy/reality differentiation-a property attribution task-in which children were questioned regarding the properties of both real and fantastical entities. We also modified the standard forced-choice categorization task (into real/fantastical) to include a 'not sure' option, thus allowing children to express uncertainty. Finally, we assessed the relation between individual levels of fantasy orientation and fantasy/reality differentiation. Results suggest that children have a more developed appreciation of the boundary between fantasy and reality than is often supposed.
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