Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 11, 2026

Gaze in Action: Head-mounted Eye Tracking of Children's Dynamic Visual Attention During Naturalistic Behavior
07:09

Gaze in Action: Head-mounted Eye Tracking of Children's Dynamic Visual Attention During Naturalistic Behavior

Published on: November 14, 2018

The early development of visual attention and its implications for social and cognitive development

Sabine Hunnius1

  • 1Department of Pediatric and Developmental Psychology, Tilburg University, Tilburg, The Netherlands. s.hunnius@nici.ru.nl

Progress in Brain Research
|October 9, 2007
PubMed

Insights

Infant looking behavior is key for cognitive and social growth. This study explores infant visual attention development, including gaze shifts and underlying neurophysiology, highlighting its impact on early development.

Area of Science:

  • Developmental Psychology
  • Neuroscience
  • Cognitive Science

Background:

  • Infant looking behavior is foundational for cognitive and social development.
  • Visual attentional systems in infants develop rapidly in the first months of life.
  • Research interest in infant visual attention has grown, with new methods emerging.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To review the development of visual attention in infants.
  • To discuss neurophysiological underpinnings and developmental changes in attention.
  • To present implications of attentional development for early cognitive and social skills.

Main Methods:

  • Review of research on overt and covert attention shifts.
  • Analysis of exogenously and endogenously controlled attention.
  • Examination of gaze shifts, covert attention, and visual scanning behavior.

Main Results:

  • Attentional mechanisms shift from subcortical to increasingly cortical control in early infancy.
  • Developmental changes in gaze control, covert attention, and scanning are observed.
  • Early attention development impacts cognitive and social milestones.

Conclusions:

  • Visual attention undergoes significant development in infancy, transitioning from subcortical to cortical control.
  • Understanding these developmental changes is crucial for cognitive and social development.
  • Continued research with new methods will further illuminate infant attention.

More Related Videos

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity06:46

Investigating the Deployment of Visual Attention Before Accurate and Averaging Saccades via Eye Tracking and Assessment of Visual Sensitivity

Published on: March 18, 2019

Comparing Eye-tracking Data of Children with High-functioning ASD, Comorbid ADHD, and of a Control Watching Social Videos05:32

Comparing Eye-tracking Data of Children with High-functioning ASD, Comorbid ADHD, and of a Control Watching Social Videos

Published on: December 7, 2018

Related Concept Videos

Piaget's Stage 1 of Cognitive Development01:14

Piaget's Stage 1 of Cognitive Development

The sensorimotor stage, the initial phase of Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development, spans the first two years of a child's life. During this period, infants actively engage with their surroundings, building cognitive awareness through direct interaction with the world. This interaction is primarily based on sensory perception and motor actions, allowing infants to gradually understand basic physical properties and predict how objects interact within their environment.
Exploration...
The Nativist Approach01:21

The Nativist Approach

The nativist approach to infant cognitive development proposes that infants are born with inherent knowledge structures that allow them to interpret the world almost immediately. This perspective contrasts with earlier developmental theories, such as those proposed by Jean Piaget, which emphasized a more gradual acquisition of cognitive abilities through interaction with the environment. One key concept in this approach is object permanence — the understanding that objects continue to exist...
Relationship with Parents: Attachment01:28

Relationship with Parents: Attachment

Parent-child interactions lay the foundation for how we understand relationships throughout life. These interactions are not uniform across families; instead, they are shaped by a range of environmental, emotional, and behavioral factors unique to each caregiver-child dynamic. Social psychologists study these early relationships to understand how patterns formed in infancy influence social functioning and interpersonal behavior in adulthood.Attachment Theory and Early Relational ModelsJohn...
Information Processing Approach01:30

Information Processing Approach

The information-processing theory of cognitive development centers on fundamental mental processes, including attention, memory, and problem-solving skills. Researchers in this field examine how cognitive abilities, such as working memory, evolve and influence children's overall development. Studies indicate that children with stronger working memory tend to excel in reading comprehension, math, and problem-solving compared to peers with less efficient memory skills. Low working memory is also...
Introducing Social Perception01:29

Introducing Social Perception

Perceiving others accurately is fundamental to effective communication and relationship-building. Social perception, a key concept in social psychology, refers to the cognitive processes through which individuals gather and interpret information about others to understand their actions, intentions, and motivations. This process extends beyond spoken words and overt behaviors, incorporating subtle nonverbal cues and contextual factors.Nonverbal Cues and Their SignificanceNonverbal cues play a...
Visual System01:26

Visual System

Light enters the eye through the cornea, a transparent, dome-shaped surface covering the surface of the eyeball that helps to direct and focus incoming light. This light is then channeled toward the pupil, an adjustable opening whose size is controlled by the iris. The iris, a pigmented muscle, regulates the amount of light entering the eye by contracting or dilating the pupil, thereby ensuring optimal light levels for clear vision.
Once through the pupil, the light passes through the lens, a...