In order to assess whether infant attention would be directed towards
a visual stimulus that was categorically at odds with surrounding stim
uli, 16 infants (mean age = 39 weeks) were presented with 5 displays,
each comprising a pair of categorically related items (2 birds) and a
pair of unrelated items (bird and cat). The infants displayed earlier
and longer fixation to the latter pair, with primary response to the d
iscrepant item in this pair (the cat). Three preliminary experiments w
ith 30 infants (mean age = 38 weeks) discounted a priori preferences f
or the cat as an explanation of these results, and confirmed that infa
nts were able to discern the categorical similarity amongst the bird i
tems, while also being able to discriminate these items.