Human infants are sensitive from birth to some intrinsic properties of objects; they are also sensitive to position. During the first weeks of life, pertinent dimensions of differentiation between objects are relative to global properties of the entire object or pattern. Position is defined by the direction of a displacement: the trajectory…

This investigation of the encoding features of graphs begins with a description of a cognitive framework which allows designers to factor into the process of designing displays how people interpret the information found and what display properties are responsible for this interpretation. The framework also provides a performance measure for use in…

Behaviorism cannot adequately explain language processing. A synthesis of the psycholinguistic and information processing approaches of cognitive psychology, however, can provide the basis for a speculative analysis of reading, if this synthesis is tempered by a perceptual learning theory of uncertainty reduction. Theorists of information…

The author discusses the role of perceptual training in the education of young perceptually handicapped children. Distinctions are drawn between perception and awareness, and the necessity of stimulation to encourage infant and child learning is emphasized. Commonalities between perception and learning are underscored. The author stresses that…

Contemporary research findings in the fields of perceptual psychology and neurology of the human brain that are directly related to the study of visual communication are reviewed and briefly discussed in this paper. Specifically, the paper identifies those major research findings in visual perception that are relevant to the study of visual…

Studies reporting predictions from assessments of infant recognition memory to later developmental performance and IQ are critiqued. Inelegancies in design, procedure, and analyses are noted. While this approach may have potential, its utility for practical or clinical purposes is still not demonstrated. (Author/RD)

Measures of visual perception, such as the Bender Visual-Motor Gestalt Test (BVMGT) usually require motoric responding, i.e., drawing of figures. An alternative test, the Non-Motoric Visual Gestalt Test (NVGT), is compared with the BVMGT and shown to be superior in measuring visual-perceptual abilities that can discriminate poor and average…

Presents a language processing model that distinguishes four functional components of reading and listening: feature detection, primary recognition, secondary recognition, and rehearsal and recoding. Uses the model to describe and incorporate some recent research. (GT)

Explores theories that underlie thinking concerning art education. Focuses on the importance of the process of children's looking at pictures and reviews critical studies on the topic. Also considers numerous aspects of Rudolph Arnheim's theories about the processes of seeing and thinking. (BG)

Three methods by which hearing adults process speechread information are discussed: selective adaptation, immediate memory, and repetition priming. Also discussed are mental representations of speech by hearing-impaired and hearing children, infants' responses to speechread stimuli compared to other stimuli, infants' speechreading of a foreign…

Hearing-impaired speechreaders use linguistic context to compensate for the poor visibility of some speech movements. Constraints on spoken language enhance speechreading performance and help compensate for the paucity of sensory data. The largest effects come from linguistic constraints imposed by sentence context--syntactic, semantic, and…

Recent research into the use of articulatory movements by the deaf has revealed the significance of this visual input, but research into the speech perception of the blind has demonstrated the significance of its loss. The implications of these findings for teaching and testing foreign language listening skills are considered. (Author/JL)

Examines current research on brain development, focusing on infants' ability to understand basic numerical concepts and arithmetic operations. Asserts that as the brain undergoes dramatic transformations, it already has a built-in capacity to understand basic numerical concepts. Recommends that parents and professionals engage in activities…

The research reviewed in this paper concerns the visual perceptual processes occurring as people are engaged in the act of reading. The issues that are examined include the control of eye movements, perception during a fixation, and perception across successive fixations. Consideration also is given to problems related to obtaining information…

Because understanding pictures is a significant aid to readers, this paper explores research on picture interpretation. The paper describes the complexity of the process and states that the ability to interpret pictures seems to proceed from the simple to the complex: from concrete experiences with pictures to the abstract interpretation of…