Some characteristics of infants preferred toys

Mothers of 3-, 6-, 9-, and 12-month-old infants indicated on a written questionnaire their child's favorite toys. The objects were coded on four different dimensions; (a) whether the preference was for a specific object or for a general class of objects, (b) the material composition of the object, (c) the stimulation provided by the object, and (d) the infant's actions with object. At 3 months of age less than half of the infants had a favorite object, but by the end of the first year almost 90% had at least one favorite toy. A number of age and gender differences were found in the relative frequencies of the object, characteristics investigated. These are discussed in terms of the cognitive, motivational, and environmental characteristics typical of different development levels during the first year of life.