COMPLEXITY, AMOUNTS OF CONTOUR, AND VISUALLY DEPENDENT BEHAVIOR IN HOODED RATS, DOMESTIC CHICKS, AND HUMAN INFANTS

Obtained visually dependent preferences for patterns composed of various sized checks redundantly or randomly arranged from 405 Long-Evans hooded rats and 539 chicks using a modified visual cliff, and from 30 human infants using an eye-fixation technique. Preferences were exhibited for patterns containing greater amounts of contour but reversed to lesser amounts as the more contoured pattern contained very small elements. Relating preferences to stimulus complexity did not prove useful in predicting preferences. It was argued that preferences could be related to neuronal activity of cells responsive to contour information in the visual system with behavioral preference peaks a functional analogue of activity peaks in these cells. (18 ref.) (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2006 APA, all rights reserved). © 1969 American Psychological Association.