Perceptual boundedness and perceptual support in conceptual development

A theoretical framework for describing the role of perceptual information i n early conceptual development is presented, In the main section of the art icle, a general operationalization. of perceptual boundedness is introduced , 3 causes of this limitation are identified, the conditions under which in fants and children seem to be perceptually bound are formulated, and the me chanisms by which this limitation declines are described, Traditional claim s that young children are perceptually bound, as well as contemporary objec tions to these claims, are often based on the assumption that perceptual in formation is generally unveridical or insufficient. Recent doubts about thi s assumption are evaluated in the final section of the article. It is concl uded that although realist arguments are untenable, there are limited forms of perceptual support for conceptual development.