The Effect of the Number of A Trials on Performance on the A‐Not‐B Task

Abstract

Abstract The A‐not‐B error (Piaget, 1954), which occurs when infants search perseveratively on reversal trials in a delayed‐response task, is one of the most widely studied phenomena in developmental psychology. Nonetheless, the effect of A‐trial experience on the probability and magnitude of this error remains unclear. In this study, 9‐month‐old infants were tested at location A until they searched correctly on 1, 6, or 11 A trials. Results revealed an effect of A trials on the proportion of infants who erred on the first B trial, and on the number of errors prior to a correct search at B (i.e., the error run). These effects were asymptotic, or U‐shaped, consistent with a dual‐process model according to which A‐trial experience increases habit strength but also provides opportunities for reflection on task structure.

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