Abstract

The experiments reported had two different goals. The first was to replicate the results obtained by Colombo, Freeseman, Coldren and Frick (1995) in order to demonstrate that individual differences in infant fixation duration reflect qualitative differences in strategies of visual intake and processing. The second goal was to test how strong is the bias toward the use of a specific strategy of visual intake. In order to answer this question, it has been tested whether the bias is stable across ages (5 vs. 8 months) and whether such a bias could be influenced by a modification in the nature of the stimulus, differently at each age. The results are discussed according to the hypothesis suggested by Colombo (1995) concerning possible neurological underpinnings for individual differences in infant looking durations.