Baillargeon's studies

Q: Baillargeon’s Drawbridge Study (1985)

__Baillargeon__ carried out two important studies. In the first, she tested object permanence in infants. Her evidence shows that object permanence happens in infants as young as five months, younger than __Piaget’s__ stated 8-12 months.

Q: Baillargeon’s Impossible Event Study (1987)

__Baillargeon__ carried out two important studies. In the second, she tested object permanence in infants. She found evidence that object permanence happens in infants as young as three months, significantly younger than __Piaget’s__ stated 8-12 months.

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Baillargeon’s Drawbridge Study (1985)

Baillargeon carried out two important studies. In the first, she tested object permanence in infants. Her evidence shows that object permanence happens in infants as young as five months, younger than Piaget’s stated 8-12 months.

Method

Violation of expectation research begins with infants being habituated to a stimulus.
In this study, five month old infants were habituated to a drawbridge that moved through a 180⁰ arc.

Method cont.

Then, the infants were presented with two new stimuli: a possible event and an impossible event.
- A possible event is physically possible. In this case, the drawbridge comes to a stop when it hits a box.
- An impossible event is physically impossible. In this case, the drawbridge appears to go through the box when it hits it.

Results

Baillargeon thought that if an infant had object permanence, they would stare at the impossible event for a significantly longer length of time.
The infants stared at the impossible event (drawbridge ‘going through’ the box) for a significantly longer time.

Conclusion

The infants stared at the impossible event for longer because they were surprised. They knew that the drawbridge should not be able to pass through the box.
So Baillargeon concluded that the five month old infants had object permanence.
Her conclusion disproved Piaget’s statement of object permanence developing between 8-12 months.

Baillargeon’s Impossible Event Study (1987)

Baillargeon carried out two important studies. In the second, she tested object permanence in infants. She found evidence that object permanence happens in infants as young as three months, significantly younger than Piaget’s stated 8-12 months.

Method

Violation of expectation research begins with infants being habituated to a stimulus.
In this study, three month old infants were habituated to a truck rolling down a ramp and passing behind a screen.
Then, the infants were presented with two new stimuli: a possible event and an impossible event.

Possible event

A possible event is physically possible.
- In this case, the screen was removed and a box placed beside the track.
- The screen was then put back and the truck was allowed to roll down and appear on the other side of the screen.

Impossible event

An impossible event is physically impossible.
- In this case, the screen was removed and a box was put on the track (blocking the truck).
- The screen was put back, and again, the truck was allowed to roll down and appear on the other side.

Results

The infants stared significantly longer at the impossible event in which the truck appeared to have been able to go through the box.

Conclusion

Remember - Baillargeon thought that if an infant had object permanence, they would stare at the impossible event for a significantly longer length of time.
Infants knew that the box was behind the screen and should have blocked the truck
So infants as young as three months demonstrated object permanence.