The effects of stimulus dimension and mode of exploration on preschool children's responses to pattern meanings and unusual uses tasks of original thinking were studied. The 3D tasks generated more responses overall. Visual and haptic exploration combined with 3D was the only condition studied to meet all criteria for construct validity.…

Sighted subjects assembled puzzles under separate conditions of visual-haptic perception and used vision and touch simultaneously to illustrate visual-type involvement and links in haptic encoding processes. A cognitive component in perceptions was found. When visual input was inadequate or independent of haptic perception, tactual information was…

Two experiments were conducted to investigate six-month-old infants' recognition memory for the shape of an object following unimodal (visual) and bimodal (visual and haptic) familiarization. Visual recognition memory was evident only when the conditions of familiarization and testing were identical. Two possible explanations are presented and…

This article describes the distribution of mass in a hand-held object as a fundamental but unrecognized contributor to the sensation one receives from the object. Experiments producing fractions for human sensitivity are given. (SA)

Thirty-nine fourth grade children exposed to a haptic (active touch) match-to-sample task made significantly fewer post-test errors, relative to control subjects, on a visual problem-soving task. (Author/PHR)

The article describes a tactile book program sponsored by the Royal Victorian Institute for the Blind in which every primary and secondary school in Victoria (Australia) state produced books with tactual elements. (DB)

Theoretical and empirical issues relating to haptic exploration and the representation of common objects during haptic classification were investigated in 3 experiments involving a total of 112 college students. Results are discussed in terms of a computational model of human haptic object classification with implications for dextrous robot…

This article defines tactile defensiveness as a sensory processing problem that results in aversive responses to touch. The article outlines causes, presents sample behaviors to assist in recognizing the possible presence of this dysfunction in infants and toddlers, and offers suggestions to assist in coping with and seeking appropriate treatment…

A study investigated the efficacy of texture fading in the treatment of food selectivity displayed by four children (ages 2-5). Successful treatment involved the gradual addition of higher textures based on results of periodic probes. Food acceptance and swallowing were reinforced, while food refusal and expulsion were placed on extinction.…

Three experiments examined whether 8.5-month-olds considered an object's width and compressibility when determining whether it could be inserted into a container. Results suggested that infants realized that large balls could fit into large but not small containers, whereas small balls could fit into both containers. Infants understood that large…

We investigate how vision affects haptic performance when task-relevant visual cues are reduced or excluded. The task was to remember the spatial location of six landmarks that were explored by touch in a tactile map. Here, we use specially designed spectacles that simulate residual peripheral vision, tunnel vision, diffuse light perception, and…

In this article, the author discusses the Yogakids program and relates her experience as a Yogakids facilitator to children with diverse challenges such as attention deficit disorder (ADD), Asperger syndrome, Down syndrome, non-verbal learning disorder, cerebral palsy and others. The mission of the Yogakids program is to educate the whole child.…

In American Sign Language (ASL), a receiver watches the signer and receives language visually. In contrast, when using tactile ASL, a variety of ASL, the deaf-blind receiver receives language by placing a hand on top of the signer's hand. In the study described in this article we compared the functions and frequency of the signs YES and #NO in…

A sequential-touching task was used to investigate whether 14-month-old infants can rapidly change how they categorize a set of objects, recognizing new groupings of objects they had previously categorized in a different way. When presented with a collection of objects that could be categorized by shape (balls vs. blocks) or material (soft vs.…

A study explored the nature of representational thought in 10 congenitally blind three- to nine-year-olds through interviews during which the subjects defined and described objects and later identified similar objects. Results suggested that blind children should be taught appropriate or systematic methods for tactually obtaining information. (CB)