Our retina captures images in two dimensions and from this we can organize three-dimensional perceptions. Seeing objects in three dimensions is called depth perception and allows us to calculate how far away objects are. With the naked eye, we estimate the distance of an approaching car or the height of a house. This ability is, in part, innate. Eleanor Gibson and Richard Walk discovered this ability in 1960 with the use of a miniature visual cliff with an abyss covered by strong glass. Gibson’s inspiration for the experiment occurred when she was having lunch on the edge of the Grand Canyon. That day she wondered if a baby, looking down, would sense danger and back away.
It allows us to calculate how far away objects are
When they returned to the Cornell University laboratory, Gibson and Walk placed babies aged 6 to 14 months on the edge of a “canyon” where they were not in any danger, that is, a visual cliff. Their mothers tried to persuade them to crawl on the glass. Most refuse to do so, which showed that babies can perceive depth. Children are likely to learn depth perception at this stage of life. However, some newborn animals that have virtually no visual experience, such as small cats, day-old goats, and newborn chicks, respond in the same way.
Under normal circumstances, all species, when they begin to walk, have the perceptive capacity they need. Furthermore, during the first month of life, babies try to avoid objects that come directly toward them, while they are not intimidated by anything that approaches them at an angle that does not reach them directly (Ball and Tronick, 1971). At 3 months they already use Gestalt perception principles, looking more closely at objects grouped differently (Quinn et al., 2002).
Biological maturity predisposes us to be cautious about heights and experience increases it. Babies’ caution about heights increases when they begin to crawl, regardless of the age at which they begin to do so. Babies who begin to walk become more cautious about heights (Campos et al., 1992).
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Fountain: Myers, D. (2006), Psychology 7th editionPanamericana Medical Editorial:Madrid