week 7: representation midterm next week – 55 multiple choice – 5 of 8 short answer
TRANSCRIPT
Week 7: RepresentationWeek 7: Representation
Midterm next week– 55 multiple choice– 5 of 8 short answer
RepresentationRepresentation
We are a symbolic/semiotic species
Representation can be:– Ideas about how the world
works– Ideas about problem space
and how it is solved– Way we organize
declarative memory
RepresentationRepresentation
Mental images that one has about objects, things, events in the world, how one interprets their world
Piaget thought symbolic, or representational thought was impossible before 18 months
BUT…we know he was wrong about some things – maybe babies can represent!
Imitation: must create a mental image of what person is doing, and map onto own body
Again: Piaget thought not at all possible until 8 months
Imitation: innate?Imitation: innate?
Meltzoff & Moore’s discovery of imitation in neonates
Imitation: innate?Imitation: innate?
Meltzoff & Moore’s discovery of imitation in neonates
They believed infant was using true selective imitation:– Use proprioceptive information to intentionally
imitate face of another– Same as intermodal mapping (also seen in very
young infants)
Other explanations?Other explanations?
Most said it was due to other things– Learning?– Fixed-action pattern, or reflex?– Socially driven? Preview of turn-taking seen in
older infants– Meltzoff & Moore saw it as a social process
that was replaced by more social behaviours
Deferred ImitationDeferred Imitation
Infants must observe model, store representation of the behaviour, and later retrieve it
Meltzoff, 1988
3 actions:
“Beep beep beep!”
“rattle rattle!”
½ of the 9mth olds in experimental group imitated immediately and 24 hours later
Very few of the controls repeated the same actions
Bauer’s workBauer’s work
Question:– Can 9 month old infants encode and recall a
sequence of actions over time?
Showed two-step sequencesRecorded ERP during immediate and
delayed recognition and 1-month later, recall
BauerBauer
Immediate = all infants recognizeHigh individual variation in 1-week
recognition in terms of ERPERP activity during recognition at 1 week
predicted recall at 1 month
Representation and PlayRepresentation and Play
Development of majority of social skills is through play
Pretend play is a form of representation
Link between deferred imitation and pretend play?
Nielsen & Dissayanake Nielsen & Dissayanake
Assessed deferred imitation from 9 monthsPretend play from 15 months
Advent of pretend play linked to ability to imitate
Children’s Knowledge of ObjectsChildren’s Knowledge of Objects
How they “represent” the world in their minds
Baillargeon uses “Violation-of-Expectation” paradigm to infer 4 month old infants’ knowledge about occluders
Violation of Expectation: Habituation Violation of Expectation: Habituation EventEvent
Screen moves through 180 degree plane until baby gets bored
Violation of Expectation: Test Event Violation of Expectation: Test Event #1: Possible Event#1: Possible Event
Screen moves through 112 degree plane and stops at occluder
Violation of Expectation: Test Event # Violation of Expectation: Test Event # 2: Impossible event2: Impossible event
Screen moves through 180 degree plane despite occluder
Violation of ExpectationViolation of Expectation
Babies represent objects that are not in view, have expectations about how they will act
Spelke’s research with the moving rod is the same idea
Spelke’s workSpelke’s work
While their abilities are impressive they do not know everything…
Habituation Consistent Inconsistent
Spelke’s workSpelke’s work
While their abilities are impressive they do not know everything…
Can reason about an occluder when it is in the way, but not when it is the original stimulus
Wynn’s workWynn’s work
Can children add and subtract?
Wynn’s workWynn’s work
Can children add and subtract?May be subitizing
What does it mean?What does it mean?
Babies may be born with some kind of representation about objects and how they act
Maybe not be innate knowledge about objects per se, but innate processes allowing them to deal with perceptual information about objects
May have tools there for them to build cognition from birth: representational thought present early on! Certainly not what Piaget said!!
Structure of knowledge:Structure of knowledge:PiagetPiaget
Knowledge builds from nothing to something
Structure of Knowledge:Structure of Knowledge:Karmiloff-SmithKarmiloff-Smith
Knowledge is there, moves to conscious awareness
Impl
icit
Exp
l ic i
t
Representational InsightRepresentational Insight
The idea that something can stand for something other than itself, e.g. written words, language
DeLoache’s work with scale models: < 3 cannot use scale models as representations of a
larger room (only 15% of trials error-free) Not just forgetting 2.5 can use pictures and videotapes to help, and
“shrunken” room, but not a model
DeLoache (2000)DeLoache (2000)
Maybe pictures make task easierExp. 1: gave 8 2 ½ year olds same task,
using only subset of items instead of whole room
In this case, only 16% of the trials were error-free, as opposed to 80% with pictures
Simpler subset of items still too salient for child; pictures allow distance
DeLoache (2000) con’dDeLoache (2000) con’d
Make 3D objects less salient, and maybe 2.5 year olds could use a scale model as a representation
Exp 2: Glass is placed over model to prevent child from touching it during familiarization
48% of the trials were errorless, compared to the usual 15% on the standard scale model task
DeLoache (2000) Con’dDeLoache (2000) Con’d
Maybe you can make it harder for 3 year olds
Exp 3: 3 year olds play with scale model for 5-10 minutes first
Only 44% of trials were errorless as opposed to the usual 80%
Indicates that increased salience diminishes ability to use model as representation
DeLoache (2000): Last one…DeLoache (2000): Last one…
Attributes 2.5 and some 3 year olds trouble with scale model to a problem with Dual Representation
Can’t see object as being both something in itself, and as standing for something else
Example from conference talk– Website visit…
This ability develops rapidly in children
Liben’s workLiben’s work
Looks at children’s use of maps and their understanding of pictures
Children advance in their understanding of maps
Children initially pick pictures based on referent
Other Representation Tasks…Other Representation Tasks…
False-Picture task– 3-4 year old children shown a picture of reality;
introduce a change in reality, and feel that picture will change to reflect it
Moving Word Task– Children believe word represents picture it is beneath,
and not concrete sounds that make up a word, and that the whole word represents a particular thing
– Believe that words are not immutable
Appearance / Reality and Fantasy / RealityAppearance / Reality and Fantasy / Reality
We know children are easily led astray by appearances (Piaget, Inhibition Theory)
Children often cannot ignore appearance in favor of reality (See this with costumes, visual illusions)
Children can distinguish fantasy and reality, but can be seduced by possibilities, but so can adults…
Appearance / RealityAppearance / Reality
Paradox in Appearance / Reality tasks
What is this?What is this?
What is it REALLY?What is it REALLY?
Appearance / RealityAppearance / Reality
Paradox in Appearance / Reality tasks Children can now say what it really is despite
what it looks like BUT…won’t admit they never knew! And will think someone else will think the same
thing! 3 year olds are egocentric and assume we see the
world as they do!
Distinction between appearance and reality has a relation to understanding of own and others’ mental states
I.e. Theory of Mind!
Theory of MindTheory of Mind
Children under 4 lack understanding of others’ mental states; have trouble reflecting on their own; some say this is key to cognition
Wellman’s Belief-Desire reasoning: Children must understand that people will act on beliefs, even when false
When asked to infer old mental states no longer in existence, or others’ mental states, children typically fail
What’s in the box?What’s in the box?
Noooo! It’s LegoNoooo! It’s Lego
What did you think it was when you first saw it? What will Tigger think it is?
Sally-Ann TaskSally-Ann Task(AKA the Maxi task)(AKA the Maxi task)
Sally-Ann is in the kitchen with her friend She has chocolate, and puts it away in a cupboard She leaves the room Her friend then moves the chocolate from the
cupboard to a drawer Sally-Ann comes back Where will she look for the chocolate?
Where is the problem?Where is the problem?
3-year-old children fail the two previous tasks According to Wellman, they do not get that the
confederates have false beliefs They have an inaccurate theory of how mental
states operate Zelazo and Boseovski (2001) caught them on
videotape, and they STILL couldn’t get it! ToM as a problem with dual representation
ToM facilitationToM facilitation
If problem is made easier, then they can do it
What is this?What is this?
What is it REALLY?What is it REALLY?
What did you think this was when you first saw it? What will Tigger think this is?
ToM FacilitationToM Facilitation
This is a representational object to begin with, they never bought that it was a snowman, so they can go back there flexibly
Change task to something more relevant (Repacholi & Gopnik)
Wellman believes children have mature ToM, just overemphasize Desires in reasoning
Is ToM innate?Is ToM innate?
Baron-Cohen believes we are born with individual ToM modules that kick in at any given time
(EDD, SAM, ToM)Neurological evidence supports this
– Castelli et al (2002)
www.icn.ucl.ac.uk/dev_group/research.htm
Is ToM innate?Is ToM innate?
Some believe ToM is specific to humans, make us different from primates– Evidence from giving apes ToM tasks with
humans
Is ToM innate?Is ToM innate?
Some believe ToM is specific to humans, make us different from primates
Some argue that this is the problem in Autism, despite normal intelligence– Castelli et al (2002)
This implies domain-specific cognition
Questions to ask yourselfQuestions to ask yourself
What would the domain-general theories of cognitive development discussed previously have to say about dual representation and ToM (i.e., Fuzzy Trace and inhibition theory)?
How could we test it?
Davis, Woolley, & Bruell (2002)Davis, Woolley, & Bruell (2002)
Children readily engage in pretense on their own
Do they “get it” if someone else is pretending?
Do they understand role of knowledge and thinking in pretense?
Do they get it earlier than we think?
Davis et al., (2002)Davis et al., (2002)
Study 1:– 3, 4, and 5 year olds– Story involved 3 people
Gleeb (alien), Sarah (North American), Loki (other country)
– 2 animalsMin (alien) or rabbit (from earth)
– 2 tasksOne-animal vs two-animalAlso a False belief task
Davis et al., 2002Davis et al., 2002
Questions:– Sarah is wiggling her nose like a min; doesn’t
know what a min is; Is she pretending to be a min, or is she just wriggling her nose?
– Gleeb is hopping like a min and a rabbit do; knows mins but not rabbits; Is Gleeb pretending to be a rabbit or a min?
Davis et al., 2002Davis et al., 2002
Results: False belief < than pretense tasksTwo animal > one animalAll children > than chance (but 3s worse than 4
and 5)
They get this kind of task sooner than some ToM tasks!
Davis et al., 2002Davis et al., 2002Why pass this but fail ToM?
– Existing tasks in lit too hard– Could be that they are in a transitional period– Could be that they get it even earlier, but that
tasks don’t elicit knowledge
Study 2– Made task even simpler by using thought
bubbles– Pretend and think story tasks
Davis et al., (2002)Davis et al., (2002)
Results:– 4 and 5 year olds >than 3 year olds, but all
groups much better than chance
Discussion:– Children understand at least by 4, and probably
younger, that to pretend something you need to know about it, and you need to have something in mind to be pretending it!
Object ClassificationObject Classification
4 phases of classification– Idiosyncratic (2-3years)– Perceptual (3 or 4)– Complimentary (between 4 and 6)– Conceptual (after 6)
Children move from focusing on external properties to internal nature of objects
Have a better way of structuring their knowledge
Take home messagesTake home messages
Infants appear to have some forms of representation at birth (imitation, object knowledge)
Representation moves from implicit unconscious knowledge to explicit knowledge
Representation what is on another’s mind is a crucial developmental ability; forms the foundation for many other cognitive abilities