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The Development of Binocular Suppression in Infants
Jiale Yang1, So Kanazawa2, Masami K Yamaguchi3
1Research and Development Initiative, Chuo University, Tokyo, Japan.
Frontiers in Psychology
|November 16, 2020
Summary
Infants aged 2-3 months can see faces despite visual suppression, unlike older infants. This suggests the infant visual system initially perceives images from both eyes before developing binocular suppression.
Area of Science:
- Developmental psychology
- Neuroscience
- Visual perception
Background:
- Binocular suppression, a process where the brain favors one eye's input, is crucial for vision.
- The developmental timeline of binocular suppression in infants is not well understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the emergence of binocular suppression in human infants.
- To determine the age at which infants develop the ability to suppress visual input from one eye.
Main Methods:
- Utilized continuous flash suppression (CFS) to present conflicting visual stimuli to each eye.
- Monitored infant responses to assess perception of a static face image suppressed by dynamic patterns.
Main Results:
- Infants aged 2-3 months detected the face's position, indicating a lack of functional binocular suppression.
- Infants aged 4-5 months did not detect the face, suggesting acquired binocular suppression.
- Detection by younger infants was not attributable to reduced contrast sensitivity.
Conclusions:
- The immature binocular visual system in 2-3 month olds can simultaneously perceive dichoptic stimuli.
- Infants lose the ability to perceive dichoptic stimuli concurrently as binocular suppression develops around 4-5 months of age.
