A symmetry-based mechanism for perceptual grouping in preverbal infants.

ABSTRACT: Newborn chicks can solve complex numerical discriminations through a purely perceptual mechanism based on the possibility of creating all equal-sized subsets. The present work investigates whether this is a prerogative of precocial birds or whether an analogous mechanism can be found in humans. We familiarized 8-month-olds with sets of even numerosities (i.e., decomposable in equal-sized subsets), and then we tested them for their spontaneous preference between two novel sets, one that cannot be divided into equal-sized subsets (i.e., a prime numerosity) and one decomposable in equal-sized subsets (i.e., a non-prime odd numerosity). Infants were tested with either the 7vs.9 comparison (i.e., the prime being smaller) or the 9vs.11 comparison (i.e., the prime being larger). Infants oriented

SUBMITTER: Geraci A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC11814068 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature