The ability to individuate objects is one of our most fundamental cognitive capacities. Recent research has revealed that when objects vary in color or luminance alone, infants fail to individuate those objects until 11.5 months. However, color and luminance frequently covary in the natural environment, thus providing a more salient and reliable…

Four experiments examined the perceptual features used by 4.5- to 11.5-month olds to individuate objects involved in occlusion events. Results indicated that 4.5-month olds used shape and size features to individuate objects in occlusion events. By 7.5 months, infants used pattern, and by 11.5 months, they used color to reason about object…

Thirty students (ages 3-20) with profound mental retardation and 30 healthy, full-term infants (5-8 months) were shown 12 patterned stimuli, three times each. Both groups looked significantly longer at face patterns than other patterns. However, the students with mental retardation looked longer at black and white patterns than colored patterns,…