Related Experiment Videos
Changes in infants' ability to switch visual attention in the first three months of life
J Atkinson1, B Hood, J Wattam-Bell
1Department of Experimental Psychology, University of Cambridge, UK.
Insights
Infant visual attention develops significantly in the first three months. One-month-olds struggle more with competing visual stimuli than three-month-olds, indicating maturing executive cortical orienting systems.
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Neuroscience
- Infant Vision
Background:
- Early infancy is a critical period for visual system development.
- Understanding gaze shifting abilities in infants provides insights into cognitive development.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the visual attention shifting abilities of 1-month-old and 3-month-old infants.
- To investigate the impact of competing visual stimuli on infant gaze control.
- To explore developmental changes in executive cortical orienting systems.
Main Methods:
- Four experiments were conducted comparing 1-month-old and 3-month-old infants' ability to shift gaze.
- Experiments involved presenting peripheral targets at varying contrast levels and in competition with other stimuli.
- Measurements included contrast thresholds, refixation accuracy, and attention shifting latency.
Main Results:
- One-month-olds had significantly different contrast detection thresholds compared to 3-month-olds.
- While attention shifting latency was similar, 1-month-olds made more directional errors in competitive conditions.
- Three-month-olds were faster with double targets, whereas 1-month-olds were slowed, showing greater disruption in younger infants.
Conclusions:
- One-month-olds exhibit more disrupted fixation-shift behavior than 3-month-olds when faced with competing visual stimuli.
- These findings suggest a developmental maturation of executive cortical orienting systems within the first three months of life.
Abstract:
The abilities of 1-month-old and 3-month-old infants to shift their gaze from a central target to a peripheral target were compared in four experiments. In experiment 1 targets matched in mean luminance to the background were presented to infants in the periphery at varying levels of contrast. The contrast thresholds for target detection were found to be significantly different for 1-month-olds compared with 3-month-olds. With targets set close to these contrast thresholds, correct refixations and the latency for shifting attention were examined in experiment 2. Two conditions were used: a peripheral target was presented against a homogeneous background (noncompetition); and in the second condition, the patterned target appeared at one of two lighter peripheral windows set against a darker background (competition). Although there was no difference between the two age groups in the latency for shifting visual attention, 1-month-olds were found to make more directional errors in the competition condition. The competition effect of two potential targets on latencies was examined in experiment 3. In the competition condition, two identical peripheral patterned targets were presented to the infants. The 3-month-olds refixated more quickly to one of the double targets in the competition condition than to a single peripheral target, whereas 1-month-olds were slowed down by a double target display. Finally, in experiment 4 the ability of the infants to process and disengage from a central stimulus and to refixate towards a similar peripheral target was examined. This type of competition disrupted both the direction of the first eye movement and the latency to shift attention in both age groups. However, the effect was significantly greater for the 1-month-olds. Taken together, the results of these experiments demonstrate the greater disruption of fixation-shift behaviour in 1-month-olds compared with 3-month-olds when competing visual stimuli are used. This developmental change is explained in terms of maturation of executive cortical orienting systems over the first months of life.