Investigation of the Prototypicality of Visual Stimuli in the Drawings of Seven-Year-Old Children

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to determine whether simple visual signs (shapes) located on the plane reveal the effect of prototypicality. The research used seven-year-old children's drawings produced from a set of simple line sign stimuli: semicircle, perpendiculars, a straight line, a diagonal, and a wavy line. The stimulus set was rotated on a form into one of four successive positions to change the location of the stimuli. The drawings composed of stimuli of specific shapes were divided into semantic categories. Analyses revealed that the prototypicality of the stimuli is related to both the shape and location of the stimuli. Additionally, the study identified two stimuli, a semicircle and perpendiculars, whose shapes show the effect of prototypicality irrespective of their stimulus location.

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