Perceptuo-cognitive development in infancy and childhood

This paper reviews the development of perceptual and cognitive abilities during infancy and childhood as reported in the literature to connect them with the same in adults. First, infants are engaged with encoding perceptual information about objects and events in memory. When they acquire language skills, they begin to associate words with these perceptual representations and to encode narratives they have heard. This enables them to communicate to others what they have encoded and to reflect on it. Integrating perceptual encounters with emotional loading renders them personally relevant and enforces their encoding. However, the encounters experienced before the age of four years can rarely be recalled in adolescence or adulthood. Thus, beliefs formed during infancy remain largely inaccessible to memory recall later in life, although they are fundamental for individuals’ behavior and the development of a person’s perspective.