title: Contrast and spatial frequency components in visual preferences of newborns.
abstract: A preferential-looking procedure was used to investigate newborns' responses to square-wave gratings varying in spatial frequency and contrast. A preliminary study confirmed that the gratings used in the experiment were suprathreshold. In the experiment newborns' preference for a grating of 0.1 cycle deg-1 within the peak contrast sensitivity range was examined. Reduction in the contrast of this grating led to a transfer of the preference to a high-contrast grating of the same space-averaged luminance with a spatial frequency outside this range (0.42 cycle deg-1). The findings are discussed with reference to the role of the contrast sensitivity function in pattern preferences of newborns: it is suggested that contrast and spatial frequency interact in determining pattern preferences.
mesh_terms: D005260:Female; D005556:Form Perception; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn / Q000523:psychology*; D008297:Male; D010364:Pattern Recognition, Visual; D010812:Physical Stimulation