THE ROBUSTNESS OF INFANT HAPTIC MEMORY - TESTING ITS CAPACITY TO WITHSTAND DELAY AND HAPTIC INTERFERENCE

The robustness of infant haptic memory was assessed in terms of its ca pacity to withstand either a brief delay or potential retroactive ''in terference'' from other haptic input. 48 infants (mean age 8 months) w ere familiarized haptically to a small cube or sphere with smooth or r ough surface texture and subsequently tested for recognition of the sh ape and texture of this stimulus in terms of the relative level of hap tic response to 3 test stimuli, comprising the familiar stimulus, a ne w-shape stimulus, and a new-texture stimulus. The test stimuli were pr esented (a) immediately, (b) after a 5-min delay, or (c) after a secon d familiarization or ''interference'' phase involving another haptic s timulus different in shape and texture to the first. The infants demon strated recognition of shape and texture in the No Delay condition, of shape and (marginally) of texture in the Delay condition, but only of texture in the Interference condition. The greater susceptibility of shape to interference was considered in terms of the degree of similar ity among the shapes employed in the study.