The co-development of looking dynamics and discrimination performance
Sammy Perone1, John P Spencer1
1Department of Psychology and Delta Center, University of Iowa.
Developmental Psychology
|August 21, 2013
Summary
Infant looking dynamics and discrimination develop together, suggesting a unified neurodevelopmental mechanism. This study links changes in visual attention and recognition abilities in infants during their first year.
Area of Science:
- Developmental psychology
- Cognitive neuroscience
- Infant cognition
Background:
- Looking dynamics and discrimination are foundational to infant cognition and change significantly in the first year.
- Previous research has not jointly investigated developmental changes in looking dynamics and discrimination.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate whether looking dynamics and discrimination develop concurrently in infants.
- To test the hypothesis that a single neurodevelopmental mechanism underlies changes in both looking and discrimination.
Main Methods:
- Measured looking dynamics and discrimination in 5-, 7-, and 10-month-old infants (N=119) across continuous dimensions.
- Utilized quantitative simulations of a dynamic neural field (DNF) model.
Main Results:
- Looking dynamics and discrimination were found to change together across development.
- These two abilities were also found to be linked within individual infants.
- Simulation results supported the hypothesis of a shared underlying neurodevelopmental mechanism.
Conclusions:
- Developmental changes in infant looking dynamics and discrimination are linked and may arise from a single neurodevelopmental mechanism.
- Dynamic neural field modeling offers insights into the processes driving these developmental changes.
