In Prep

Under Review

In Press

2023

• The BabyView Camera: Designing a New Head-mounted Camera to Capture Children’s Early Social and Visual Environments. [Abstract] [PDF] [OSF] [DOI] [PrePrint] [BibTeX]
  B. Long, G. Kachergis, V. A. Marchman, S. F. Radwan, R. Z. Sparks, V. Xiang, C. Zhuang, O. Hsu, B. Newman, D. L. K. Yamins, & M. C. Frank. (2023). Behavior Research Methods. doi:10.3758/s13428-023-02206-1

  Abstract: Head-mounted cameras have been used in developmental psychology research for more than a decade to provide a rich and comprehensive view of what infants see during their everyday experiences. However, variation between these devices has limited the field’s ability to compare results across studies and across labs. Further, the video data captured by these cameras to date has been relatively low-resolution, limiting how well machine learning algorithms can operate over these rich video data. Here, we provide a well-tested and easily constructed design for a head-mounted camera assembly—the BabyView—developed in collaboration with Daylight Design, LLC., a professional product design firm. The BabyView collects high-resolution video, accelerometer, and gyroscope data from children approximately 6 - 30 months of age via a GoPro camera custom mounted on a soft child-safety helmet. The BabyView also captures a large, portrait-oriented vertical field-of-view that encompasses both children’s interactions with objects and with their social partners. We detail our protocols for video data management and for handling sensitive data from home environments. We also provide customizable materials for onboarding families with the BabyView. We hope that these materials will encourage the wide adoption of the BabyView, allowing the field to collect high-resolution data that can link children’s everyday environments with their learning outcomes.

  BibTeX: @article{long2023, author = {Long, Bria and Kachergis, George and Marchman, Virginia A and Radwan, Samaher F and Sparks, Robert Z and Xiang, Violet and Zhuang, Chengxu and Hsu, Oliver and Newman, Brett and Yamins, Daniel LK and Frank, Michael C}, date-added = {2023-07-24 16:15:56 +0200}, date-modified = {2023-07-24 16:15:56 +0200}, journal = {Behavior Research Methods}, title = {The BabyView Camera: Designing a New Head-mounted Camera to Capture Children’s Early Social and Visual Environments}, website = {https://link.springer.com/article/10.3758/s13428-023-02206-1}, preprint = {https://psyarxiv.com/238jk/}, osf = {https://osf.io/kwvxu/}, doi = {10.3758/s13428-023-02206-1}, year = {2023} }

• Young children can identify knowledgeable speakers from their causal influence over listeners. [Abstract] [Link] [OSF] [PDF] [BibTeX]
  A. Chuey, R. Z. Sparks, & H. Gweon. (2023). In Proceedings of the 45th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society.

  Abstract: Prior work demonstrates an early-emerging understanding of how speakers can alter listeners’ minds and actions. Yet, an abstract understanding of communication entails more than forward inferences about its influence on the listener; it also supports inverse inferences about the speaker based on its causal influence over the listener. Can children reason about the minds of speakers based on their causal influence over listeners? Across three studies, children viewed two communicative exchanges where a listener attempted to activate a toy; we manipulated when speakers communicated (Exp.1), how listeners’ subsequent actions changed (Exp.2), and whether speakers spoke or sneezed (Exp.3). By 5 years of age, children inferred the speaker who appeared to cause the listener to succeed was more knowledgeable, but only when they produced speech. These results suggest children can reason causally about the sources of communication, identifying knowledgeable speakers based on their influence over a listener’s actions and their outcomes.

  BibTeX: @inproceedings{chuey2023, author = {Chuey, Aaron and Sparks, Robert Z and Gweon, Hyowon}, date-added = {2023-07-24 16:15:56 +0200}, date-modified = {2023-07-24 16:15:56 +0200}, booktitle = {{Proceedings of the 45th Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society}}, pages = {230235}, title = {Young children can identify knowledgeable speakers from their causal influence over listeners}, website = {https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9qh630dn}, pdf = {https://rbzsparks.github.io/papers/2023_Chuey_Sparks_Gweon_CogSci.pdf}, osf = {https://osf.io/derxp/?view_only=d3ad5730e321405da0e5347dfb35a3f0}, year = {2023} }

2022

• Preschool-Aged Children Can Infer What Speakers Know Based on How They Influence Others. [Abstract] [Link] [DOI] [PDF] [BibTeX]
  R. Z. Sparks, A. Chuey, & H. Gweon. (2022). Stanford Digital Repository.

  Abstract: How do we know what others know? Prior work has examined how children use evidence about isolated agents, like their perceptual access and actions, to infer what they know. However, humans are rarely fully isolated; instead, we are often surrounded by others whom we interact with, influence, and are influenced by. In these contexts, we can use a speaker’s communication and the way it causes a listener to behave to infer what that speaker knows - even if we do not know the specific content of what was communicated. The present studies investigated how preschool-aged children use two pieces of evidence about listeners to reason about what speakers know: changes in the outcomes of a listener’s actions following communication (Study 1) and changes in a listener’s actions themselves following communication (Study 2). In both studies, children observed two scenarios where a listener failed to activate a toy before succeeding. In Study 1, children observed a speaker produce nonsense language towards a listener after they failed but before they succeeded to activate a toy, as well as another speaker who spoke to a listener prior to initial failure. In Study 2, children observed a speaker communicate with a listener before a distinct change in action, followed by success, as well as another speaker who communicated with a listener resulting in no distinct change in action, followed by success. When asked which speaker knows how to make the toy work, 5 year-olds chose the speaker who appeared to cause the listener to succeed (Study 1) or change their action (Study 2). These results suggest that preschool-aged children are sensitive to the way speakers influence others via communication and can use evidence of that influence to infer what speakers know. More broadly, these studies highlight children’s ability to reason about the knowledge of one agent (a speaker) based primarily on evidence about another agent (a listener).

  BibTeX: @thesis{sparks2022, author = {Sparks, Robert Z and Chuey, Aaron and Gweon, Hyowon}, date-added = {2023-07-24 16:15:56 +0200}, date-modified = {2023-07-24 16:15:56 +0200}, title = {Preschool-Aged Children Can Infer What Speakers Know Based on How They Influence Others}, journal = {Stanford Digital Repository}, website = {https://purl.stanford.edu/xx316hn9817}, doi = {10.25740/xx316hn9817}, pdf = {https://rbzsparks.github.io/papers/2022_honors_thesis.pdf}, year = {2022} }