Timing strategies used in defensive blinking to optical collisions in 5- to 7-month-old infants

• Published in: Infant behavior & development 2000-01, Vol.23 (3), p.253-270
• Main Authors: Kayed, Nanna Sønnichsen, van der Meer, Audrey
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0163-6383; 1879-0453
• DOI: 10.1016/S0163-6383(01)00043-1

When objects approach on a collision course, young babies will blink to protect their eyes. The timing of the blink is crucial, since it serves to protect the eyes from being injured. The image of a looming virtual object approached infants under different constant velocities and constant accelerations. The youngest infants (5–6 months) blinked when the image of the virtual object reached a threshold visual angle, while older infants (6–7 months) geared their blinks to the image’s time-to-collision. Infants using a strategy based on time coped successfully with all approach conditions, while infants using a strategy based on visual angle had difficulty with the fastest accelerative approach condition. The findings indicate that infants around 6 months of age shift to a more sophisticated strategy based on time, allowing them to deal with more demanding perceptual tasks.