Autistic traits foster effective curiosity-driven exploration

PLoS Computational Biology, Journal Year: 2024, Volume and Issue: 20(10), P. e1012453 - e1012453

Published: Oct. 31, 2024

Curiosity-driven exploration involves actively engaging with the environment to learn from it. Here, we hypothesize that cognitive mechanisms underlying exploratory behavior may differ across individuals depending on personal characteristics such as autistic traits. In turn, this variability might influence successful exploration. To investigate this, collected self- and other-reports of traits university students, tested them in an task which participants could hiding patterns multiple characters. Participants' prediction errors learning progress (i.e., decrease error) were tracked a hierarchical delta-rule model. Crucially, freely decide when disengage character what explore next. We examined whether modulated relation found lower scores insistence-on-sameness general less persistent, primarily relying during initial stages Conversely, higher more persistent relied later phases exploration, resulting better performance task. This research advances our understanding interplay between drives, emphasizing importance individual processes highlighting need for personalized approaches.

Language: Английский

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Active control over exploration improves memory in toddlers

Proceedings of the Royal Society B Biological Sciences, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 292(2039)

Published: Jan. 1, 2025

Across two experiments, we implemented a novel gaze-contingent eye-tracking paradigm to investigate the early emergence of memory benefits from active control over exploration and examine how exploratory behaviours affect formation in development. Toddlers (experiment 1: n = 36, 18–36 months; experiment 2: 41, 23–36 months) were either allowed actively their (active condition) or presented with same information that they could only passively observe (passive condition 1; yoked 2). They then tested preferential-looking which familiar versus stimuli pairs. Evidence eye-movement patterns indicates toddlers demonstrate improved recognition when given learning. Toddlers’ pace learning (i.e. visitation rate) explains improvement exploration. Their is also related individual differences systematicity behaviour sequence entropy). These findings suggest exhibit more sophisticated strategies than previously believed, revealing development ability adapt these enhance therefore support

Language: Английский

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Perceptual Novelty Drives Early Exploration in a Bottom‐Up Manner

Developmental Science, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: 28(3)

Published: March 3, 2025

Children are more likely than adults to explore new options, but is this due a top-down epistemic-uncertainty-driven process or bottom-up novelty-driven process? Given immature cognitive control, children may choose option because they susceptible the automatic attraction of perceptual novelty and have difficulty disengaging from it. This hypothesis difficult test intertwined with epistemic uncertainty. To address problem, we designed n-armed bandit task fully decouple By having 4- 6-year-olds perform task, found that predominated 4-year-olds' (but not adults' older children's) decisions even when it had no uncertainty lowest reward value. Additionally, 4-year-olds showed such preference only option's was directly observable, could be anticipated, providing evidence alone can drive elevated exploration in early development manner.

Language: Английский

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Infants Assume Questions Serve an Information‐Seeking Function, Link Them to Interrogative Sentences and Differentiate Them From Assertions

Child Development, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: May 30, 2025

ABSTRACT Eye‐tracking studies tested the understanding of two types speech acts (questions and assertions) in 14‐, 18‐, 30‐month‐olds ( N = 280; 149 females; ethnicity data collection forbidden, testing 2021–2024). Experiments involved objects either hidden or visible for a speaker. By 14 months, when speaker asked questions, infants focused on r s > 0.31). Infants linked novel labels interrogative sentences to by 18 months declarative d 0.52). Thus, assume questions seek information one is lacking, while assertions share has access to. Furthermore, connect assertions, showing an communicative form–function relations.

Language: Английский

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Children Strategically Decide What to Practice

Child Development, Journal Year: 2025, Volume and Issue: unknown

Published: May 31, 2025

ABSTRACT Adjusting practice to different goals and characteristics is key learning, but its development remains unclear. Across 2 preregistered experiments, 190 4‐to‐8‐year‐olds (106 female; mostly White; data collection: December 2021–September 2022) 31 adults played an easy a difficult game, then chose one before test on either the easy, difficult, or randomly chosen game. All children adjusted their active choices condition. When game was known, they practiced that However, when chosen, only 6+ while younger showed trending effect. This suggests ability prepare for uncertainty may develop between ages 4 6.

Language: Английский

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