Open AccessDevelopment of visual perception of others’ actions: Children’s judgment of lifted weight
Author(s) -
Alessandra Sciutti,
Laura Patanè,
Giulio Sandini
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
plos one
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.99
H-Index - 332
ISSN - 1932-6203
DOI - 10.1371/journal.pone.0224979
Subject(s) - perception , action (physics) , psychology , cognitive psychology , visual perception , object (grammar) , developmental psychology , computer science , artificial intelligence , neuroscience , physics , quantum mechanics
Humans are excellent at perceiving different features of the actions performed by others. For instance, by viewing someone else manipulating an unknown object, one can infer its weight–an intrinsic feature otherwise not directly accessible through vision. How such perceptual skill develops during childhood remains unclear. To confront this gap, the current study had children (N:63, 6–10 years old) and adults (N:21) judge the weight of objects after observing videos of an actor lifting them. Although 6-year-olds could already discriminate different weights, judgment accuracy had not reached adult-like levels by 10 years of age. Additionally, children’s stature was a more reliable predictor of their ability to read others’ actions than was their chronological age. This paper discusses the results in light of a potential link between motor development and action perception.