CDC Seminar: Stanka Fitneva - In a Sea of People: The Ontogeny of Information Seeking

Children’s discovery of knowledge through deliberate action is an important aspect of development. By actively and deliberately searching for information, children are able to access information at a moment of cognitive readiness. They are not at the mercy of happenstance and do not depend on adults’ ability to identify their interests and needs. Yet the extent to which children’s deliberate actions contribute to their knowledge depends on children’s ability to efficiently pursue their informational goals. We examine the development of this ability in several directions. How well do children choose between looking for themselves and asking others to obtain information? How sensitive are they to cues that differentiate informants from each other? The results reveal both early roots and extended growth of the ability to selectively allocate attention in several decision domains implicated in information seeking.