Author Type

Graduate Student

Date of Award

2011

Document Type

Thesis

Publication Status

Version of Record

Submission Date

October 2026

Abstract

One of the most fundamental functions of human cognition is to parse an otherwise chaotic world into different kinds of things. The ability to learn what objects are and how to respond to them appropriately is essential for daily living. The literature has presented contrasting evidence about the role of perpetual features such as artifact appearance versus causal or inductive reasoning in chldren's category distinctions (e.g., function). The present project used a child-initiated inquiry paradigm to investigate how children conceptualize artifacts, specifically how they prioritize different types of information that typify not only novel but also familiar objects. Results underscore a hybrid model in which perceptual features and deeper properties act synergistically to inform children's artifact conceptualization. Function, however, appears to be the driving force of this relationship.

Extent

ix, 131 p. : ill. (some col.)

Comments

by Patricia P. Schultz.|Thesis (M.A.)--Florida Atlantic University, 2011.|Includes bibliography.|Electronic reproduction. Boca Raton, Fla., 2011. Mode of access: World Wide Web.|by Patricia P. Schultz.

Identifier

FADT3320103

Format

pdf

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