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A Global‐to‐Basic Trend in Early Categorization: Evidence From a Dual‐Category Habituation Task
Author(s) -
Younger Barbara A.,
Fearing Dru D.
Publication year - 2000
Publication title -
infancy
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.361
H-Index - 69
eISSN - 1532-7078
pISSN - 1525-0008
DOI - 10.1207/s15327078in0101_05
Subject(s) - optimal distinctiveness theory , categorization , psychology , habituation , task (project management) , perception , preference , cognitive psychology , object (grammar) , developmental psychology , concept learning , representation (politics) , social psychology , mathematics , artificial intelligence , computer science , statistics , management , neuroscience , economics , psychotherapist , politics , political science , law
A series of 3 experiments are reviewed in which infants between 4 and 10 months of age were familiarized with members of 2 basic‐level object categories. The degree of distinctiveness between categories was varied. Preference tests were intended to determine whether infants formed a single category representation (at a more global level) or 2 basic‐level representations. Across 3 experiments, 10‐month‐old infants appeared to have formed multiple basic‐level categories, whereas younger infants tended to form broader, more inclusive representations. The tendency to form multiple categories was influenced to some extent by category distinctiveness. Whereas 10‐month‐olds formed separate categories for all contrasts, 7‐month‐olds did so only when the 2 familiarized categories were from separate global domains. A perceptual account of the global‐to‐basic shift in early categorization is offered. Task dependencies in early categorization are also discussed.