Infants learn to transfer knowledge by 16 months

Researchers have identified when an important milestone in infants’ development occurs: the ability to transfer knowledge to new situations.

In a series of studies, the researchers found that 8-month-olds had trouble using newly acquired knowledge in a different circumstance, but 16-month-olds could do so.

“Some time between 8 and 16 months, infants begin learning how to learn,” said Julie Hupp, lead author of the study and assistant professor of psychology at Ohio State University’s Newark campus.

“They begin to transfer their new knowledge and use it in a totally different situation, which is a very important step in development.”

While many scientists had assumed that the ability to transfer knowledge was a product of infant development, no research had tested when that might occur, except for the case of word learning, Hupp said.

Hupp conducted the study with Vladimir Sloutsky, professor of psychology and human development and the director of the Center for Cognitive Science at Ohio State.

Their work appears online in the Journal of Experimental Child Psychology and will be published in a future print edition.

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