What or where? Infants Interpret Pointing as Referring to a Location Rather Than to a Specific Object

Humans often interpret pointing as referring to an object, however, it can also indicate a direction or relevant spatial location. We investigated which one of these interpretations can explain 14-month-olds responses in a two-alternative choice task. We conducted three experiments, in which an experimenter pointed at one of the two lateral objects, swapped their positions in full view of the infant, and then allowed the infant to choose. Pointing was either produced in an Ostensive Addressing (Experiment 1), Nonostensive Addressing (Experiment 2), or Ostensive Labelling context (Experiment 3). In the Ostensive Addressing and Ostensive Labelling experiments infants chose the non-indicated object in the indicated direction significantly more often than predicted by chance. In contrast, in the Nonostenive Addressing experiment, infants' performance was on chance. These findings suggest that infants follow the direction of pointing rather than interpreting it as indicating a specific object in a communicative context.