Looking Beyond the Obvious

• Published in: The American psychologist Vol. 78; no. 5; pp. 667 - 677
• Main Author: Gelman, Susan A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: United States American Psychological Association 01-07-2023
• Subjects: Childhood Development; Children; Cognition; Concepts; Distortion; Essentialism; Genes; History; Human; Humans; Language; development; concepts; children; generic language; essentialism
• ISSN: 0003-066X; 1935-990X
• DOI: 10.1037/amp0001152

A hallmark of human cognition is the capacity to think about observable experience in ways that are nonobvious-from scientific concepts (genes, molecules) to everyday understandings (germs, soul). Where does this capacity come from, and how does it develop? I propose that, contrary to what is classically assumed, young children often extend beyond the tangible "here-and-now" to think about hidden, invisible, abstract, or nonpresent entities. I review examples from three lines of research: essentialism, generic language, and object history. These findings suggest that, in some respects, the standard developmental story may be backward: for young humans, going beyond the obvious can be easy, and sticking with the here-and-now can be a challenge. I discuss the implications for how children learn, what is basic in human thought, and how tendencies that make us so smart and sophisticated can also be sources of distortion and bias.
Public Significance Statement
This article reviews three lines of research indicating that, contrary to classic developmental theories, nonobvious and abstract concepts are central to young children's thoughts. I discuss how this human capacity has both positive and negative consequences: It underlies not only our impressive capacity to learn but also introduces systematic reasoning biases.