Mechanisms of Visual Development: An Example of Computational Models

For centuries, philosophers and scientists have been fascinated by the development of visual perception. Doubtless, this continued interest stems in large part from the fact that we are highly visual creatures. We use our eyes to acquire information about innumerable aspects of our surroundings. For example, vision informs us of the presence, location, and identity of objects and of the rules governing the interactions of one object and another. Vision steers interactions with our surroundings by guiding reaching, locomotion, and posture. It also provides important information about the social environment. Thus, any description of early human development must include a description about how infants and children use their eyes to gather information about their surroundings. I argue in this chapter that the study of visual development is important for an additional reason: The growth of visual perception provides a unique opportunity to examine mechanisms that underlie developmental transitions from one level of performance to another.

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