After 8 months have passed: long-term recall of events by 1- to 2-year-old children.
The time course of development of the ability to remember specific past events is a matter of considerable curiosity and debate. Traditional and contemporary theories alike suggest that infants are unable to consolidate and stabilise event knowledge for recall after a long time period. In two experiments, we used elicited imitation, a nonverbal analogue to cued verbal recall, to test 21-, 24-, and 29-month-old children's recall of events they had experienced eight months previously. At the time of original exposure some of the events were novel, whereas others depicted activities familiar to 1-year-olds. At the eight-month retention test, performance of the experienced children was compared to that of matched naive controls. In both experiments the experienced children produced a greater number of the novel events; there were no differences between the groups on the familiar events. The results demonstrate long-term recall of specific past events by 1- to 2-year-olds. They thus challenge the suggestion that the absence of memories from infancy and early childhood is attributable to the inability to form memories that are enduring and accessible over time.
Bauer
P J
PJ
Institute of Child Development, University of Minnesota, Minneapolis 55455-0345, USA.
Hertsgaard
L A
LA
Dow
G A
GA
D000704:Analysis of Variance; D002657:Child Development; D003463:Cues; D005260:Female; D005500:Follow-Up Studies; D006801:Humans; D007223:Infant; D008297:Male; D011939:Mental Recall; D009633:Nonverbal Communication; D010988:Play and Playthings; D011582:Psychological Theory; D012153:Retention, Psychology; D013997:Time Factors