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Related Experiment Videos

Age differences in enumerating things that move: implications for the development of multiple-object tracking.

Lana M Trick1, Diana Audet, Lynn Dales

  • 1Department of Psychology, University of Guelph, Guelph, Ontario, Canada. ltrick@uoguelph.ca

Memory & Cognition
|April 3, 2004
PubMed
Summary

Enumerating 1-4 items is unaffected by movement, but tracking more items requires attention shifts, with this interference decreasing with age. This supports the attentional theory of spatial enumeration.

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Area of Science:

  • Cognitive Psychology
  • Visual Perception
  • Developmental Psychology

Background:

  • The attentional theory of spatial enumeration posits distinct mechanisms for subitizing (1-4 items) and tracking multiple moving objects.
  • Subitizing is rapid (40-120 msec/item), while enumerating larger quantities involves attentional shifts.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate how item motion affects enumeration across different ages.
  • To test predictions of the attentional theory of spatial enumeration regarding static versus moving items.

Main Methods:

  • A number discrimination task was used to assess enumeration of static and moving items.
  • Participants aged 8, 10, 12, and 20 years old were tested.
  • Item motion varied from random independent movement to confined movement within a small area.

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Main Results:

  • Enumeration of 1-4 items was not significantly hindered by random item motion at any age.
  • Enumeration of 6-9 items was slowed by movement, even within a small area.
  • The age-related decrease in motion interference was substantial, from 788 msec at 8 years to 136 msec at 20 years.

Conclusions:

  • Findings support the attentional theory of spatial enumeration, differentiating mechanisms for small versus large set sizes.
  • Object motion significantly impacts enumeration of larger sets, with developmental improvements in handling this interference.
  • The results have implications for understanding multiple-object tracking, visual working memory, and object-based attention.