Real space and represented space: Cross-cultural perspectives

Abstract

This paper examines the contribution of cross-cultural studies to our understanding of the perception and representation of space. A cross-cultural survey of the basic difficulties in understanding pictures—ranging from the failure to recognise a picture as a representation to the inability to recognise the object represented in the picture— indicates that similar difficulties occur in pictorial and nonpictorial cultrues. The experimental work on pictorial space derives from two distinct traditions: the study of picture perception in “remote” populations and the study of the perceptual illusions. A comprison of the findings on pictorial space perception with those on real space perceptual illusions. A comparison of findings on pictorial space perception with those on real space perception and perceptual constancy suggersts that cross-cultural differences in the perception of both real and representational space involve two different types of skills: those related exclusively to either real space or representational space, and those related to both. Different cultural groups use different skills to perform the same perceptual tasks.

Recognition by Humans and Pigeons of Novel Views of 3-D Objects and Their Photographs.

“…However, pictorial representations of objects-even photographs-do not provide all of the visual information that is available and that may influence object recognition in the real world. Further, recognizing objects from pictures may involve interpretive or other processes in addition to those used in real-world object recognition, and such processes may vary with evolution, development, or experience (e.g., DeLoache & Burns, 1994;Deregowski, 1989;Fagot, 2000;Nicholson & Seddon, 1977). Therefore, investigations of object recognition using pictorial stimuli may be tapping into processes that underlie the interpretation of pictures instead of, or in addition to, processes that underlie object recognition, and theories of object recognition based exclusively on research using pictorial stimuli may not provide a complete description of object recognition processes.…”

The role of symbol-based experience in early learning and transfer from pictures: Evidence from Tanzania.

“…It also shows that, despite significant 8 delays in learning and transfer of information from picture books, children from a pictorially sparse culture begin to treat pictures referentially, as a source of information about the world, by the end of their 3rd year of life. There have been a variety of proposals regarding the particular types of experiences that may be necessary for the early development of pictorial understanding during infancy, ranging from early exposure to two-dimensional images (e.g., Bovet & Vauclair, 2000;DeLoache et al, 1979;Deregowski, 1989), independent exploration of pictures (e.g., DeLoache, 1991;DeLoache et al, 1998;Fletcher & Sabo, 2006;Murphy, 1978), cultural experiences with other people using pictures and other symbols to communicate information about the world (e.g., Callaghan et al, 2011;Callaghan & Rankin, 2002;DeLoache & Burns, 1994;Gelman et al, 2005), or some combination of these factors. Future cross-cultural research examining the specific skills involved in the development of referential understanding of pictures and the type of experiences that affect these skills could reveal important information about mechanisms underlying symbolic development.…”

“…It has frequently been proposed that experience with symbols aids in the development of pictorial understanding (Bovet & Vauclair, 2000;DeLoache, 1991;Deregowski, 1989;Szechter & Liben, 2004). There is also empirical evidence that directing an infant's attention to the link between pictures and their referents through repeated interactions facilitates early comprehension and production of pictorial symbols (Callaghan & Rankin, 2002).…”

An automated apparatus for presenting depth-rotated three-dimensional objects in human and animal object recognition research

“…Thus, theories of object recognition based exclusively on research using pictorial stimuli may not provide a complete description of object recognition processes. Furthermore, recognizing objects from pictures may involve interpretive or other processes in addition to those used in real-world object recognition, and such processes may vary with evolution, development, or experience (e.g., Deregowski, 1989Deregowski, , 2000Fagot, 2000;Watanabe, 2000). Therefore, using pictorial stimuli to investigate object recognition may be tapping into processes that underlie the interpretation of pictures, instead of or in addition to processes that underlie object recognition.This may be an especially important consideration in comparative research on differences between species or across development.…”