by Colleen Reid, Mindful Mum, 24th December 2011

The study, undertaken by Fiona Jack, of the University of Otago, in New Zealand, tested the memories of 46 infants aged between 27 and 51-months old. The study involved a contraption that was used to train the children from a very young age to see if they could retain a memory of that event six years later.

The researchers showed the infants how to use a toy called ‘The Magic Shrinking Box’. The children put a toy into the box, cranked a lever and a miniature version of the same toy came out the bottom along with sounds and flashing lights. Each child was trained on how to work the box over two days and on the third day, the child was asked if they could remember how it worked. They were given a medal for their participation.

Six years on, the same children, now aged between 10 and 12, were tested to see if they could remember anything about the test. Firstly, the medal they had achieved was shown to them and then they were allowed to try and play with ‘The Magic Shrinking Box’.

The results

Only around a fifth of the participants could remember how the contraption worked but age didn’t play a significant definer in this study. Two of the youngest children in the study, who were both aged two at the time, were able to recall the test.

No other personality traits such as general good memory or language skills seemed prominent in the results. Researchers did notice that the parents who spoke to their children about the test for days to weeks after the study ended were the children who could recall the test best.

Conclusion

This study indicates that earliest memories can occur earlier than previously thought. It also suggests that talking about a particular event shortly after it has occurred can develop and preserve it in the child’s memory.

Source: LiveScience
Photography: Abigail Batchelder @Flickr