The Roles of Comparison and Function in the Categorization of Novel Objects in 3-Year-Olds Pubblico
Kimura, Katherine Chiyono (2012)
Abstract
Abstract
The Roles of Comparison and Function in the Categorization of Novel
Objects in 3-Year-Olds
In early development, children learn to organize their environment
into categories, often
using an object's shape as a basis for category membership (e.g.,
grouping an apple with other
round objects). However, when children have the opportunity to
compare similarly shaped
objects from the same category (e.g., an apple and a pear), they
are more likely to group objects
based on function even when the function match is perceptually
dissimilar (e.g., a banana). Even
in the absence of comparison, children can extend category
membership by function when
functional information is highlighted. The current studies explore
the unique and combined roles
of comparison and function in the assimilation of novel
instances (e.g., a kiwano) into familiar
categories (e.g., fruit). In Experiment 1, 3-year-olds viewed one
or two photographs of familiar
exemplars drawn from the same familiar category and selected
another category member
between two objects: a perceptually similar, outside-of-category,
familiar object (e.g., a balloon)
and a perceptually dissimilar, within-category, novel object (e.g.,
a kiwano). Children, regardless
of whether they viewed one or two objects, preferred the familiar
perceptual match to the novel
category match. In Experiment 2, when the perceptual and category
matches were both novel,
children displayed evidence of benefiting from comparison.
Functional information, however,
did not increase category responses, suggesting that highlighting
function may fail to increase
awareness of functionally relevant, perceptual properties.
Together, these findings underscore the
difficulty in assimilating novel objects into familiar categories
but demonstrate that comparison
may assist in this process.
Table of Contents
I. INTRODUCTION........................................................................
1
The Defining Characteristics of Categories
2
The Role of Perceptual Features in Categorization
3
The Role of Relational Features in Categorization
6
Structural Alignment
7
Functional Information
10
The Current Study
12
II. EXPERIMENT 1........................................................................
14
Method
15
Participants
15
Materials
15
Procedures
16
Results
18
Individual Patterns Analysis
19
Naming Analysis
20
Discussion
21
III. EXPERIMENT 2.......................................................................
24
Method
24
Participants
24
Materials
25
Stimulus Ratings
25
Procedures
27
Results
28
Individual Patterns Analysis
29
Naming Analysis
30
Individual Items Analysis
31
Discussion
33
IV. GENERAL DISCUSSION.............................................................
35
The Role of Structural Alignment
35
The Role of Functional Information
40
Limitations and Future Directions
44
Conclusion
47
V. REFERENCES...........................................................................
49
VI. TABLES.................................................................................
53
VII. FIGURE CAPTIONS.................................................................
59
VIII. FIGURES.............................................................................
60
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