Investigated shifts of gaze to peripheral targets in full-term and very preterm infants with transient periventricular echogenicity, a type of short-term brain damage, between 6-26 weeks old. Found that differences between full- and preterm infants was small, but after 16 weeks, there were subtle differences between them as preterms took longer to…

Describes a study that examined whether children respond differently when they speak and write about pictures as a result of participating in a visual literacy program. Fifth graders participating in such a program were asked to examine two books and choose one as a Caldecott winner, giving reasons for their choices. (nine references) (CLB)

Tested preassessment screening procedure to evaluate sensory-motor and perceptual encoding processes of children referred for psychoeducational assessment. Compared assessment procedures and outcomes for 18 children screened for encoding deficits and for 23 children whose psychoeducational evalution did not include screening. Results demonstrated…

Ten normally speaking children, 10 having mild misarticulations, and 10 having severe misarticulations, aged seven-eight, were administered unisensory and bisensory processing tasks. Results showed that misarticulating children obtained lower scores than normal children on all bisensory tasks and had larger decrements from unisensory to bisensory…

This commentary on the article by Jones and Smith in this issue examines whether coherent conceptual cores exist in long-term memory; abstract propositions constitute conceptual cores; concepts in long-term memory control behavior; and the primary purpose of developing and using concepts is to taxonomize the environment. (TJQ)

Reviews "An Odyssey in Learning and Perception" (E. J. Gibson), a volume of collected works that present a first-hand account of many advances in psychology over the past 60 years. A discussion of the two basic questions that capture the essence of Gibson's research, "What is learned" and "What is information" is…

In contrast to earlier notions, a systems view of an organism's development sees genes as only one component in a hierarchy of influences that produces finished traits and differentiation. Developmental canalization proceeds from genes, behavior, and environment as well as from the coaction of these factors. (BC)

Children were tested at ages four and six for recall of clusterable objects under play and sort conditions. Conceptual clustering predicted recall performance of six-year olds in both conditions and of four-year olds in the sort condition. The stability of memory variables was low with the exception of free recall. (BC)

Rejects the neuronal fatigue, or selective adaptation, hypothesis of young infant habituation. Holds that studies cited by Dannemiller and Banks do not support the inferences of selective adaptation. Rejects the hypothetical neurophysiological mechanism of neuronal fatigue. Proposes that studies do not indicate that young infants' visual cortical…

Tested children 18 months to 4 years for their ability to relocate a hidden object after self-produced movement around an array of 4 locations. Children encountered no specific difficulty in coordinating dimensions, or they solved the task without recourse to such a system. They also appeared to change strategy when the problem requires more…

Studied the relationship of joint mother-child planning before and during tasks, and the ability of four and eight year olds to plan on their own. Found that older children planned more effectively, especially during tasks, and that mothers of younger children concerned themselves with task procedures rather than strategy. (MDM)

Fifty two- to three-year olds performed paired-associate or control tasks with response items that were related or unrelated. Children in the related task performed more slowly than children in the unrelated task. Findings suggest that children in the related task experienced interference in the acquisition or retrieval of paired-associate items.…

This study compared improvements in visual function of 20 Spanish children with low vision, ages 4 to 6 years. Children received either the Barraga and Morris program or the Frostig program, or placebo control or no treatment. No significant differences between treatment groups were found. (DB)

Examined persistence of sensory memory by studying developmental differences in recall of attended and ignored lists of digits for second-graders, fifth-graders, and adults. Found developmental increase in the persistence of memory only for the final item in an ignored list, which is the item for which sensory memory is thought to be the most…

Examines the relationship between perceptual modality measured by the Swassing-Barbe Modality Index (SBMI) to musical aptitude measured by Primary Measures of Music Audiation (PMMA) in kindergarten students. Reports correlations between the measures that support findings at other grade levels. Supports the theory that perceptual modalities become…