{"pk":49795,"title":"Beyond words and actions: what implicit measures reveal in preschoolers' performance on the RMTS task","subtitle":null,"abstract":"This study investigates relational reasoning in preschoolers using the Relational-Match-To-Sample (RMTS) task, which tests their ability to match \"same\" and \"different\" relations. We investigate (1) whether 4-year-old children can succeed in the RMTS task and (2) whether verbal justifications of relational language predict success. Forty-nine children participated (Mage=54.97 months), and their performance was measured both behaviourally and through eye-tracking. Results show children identified relational matches above chance. Children who used relational language selected relational matches more often. Eye-tracking data revealed distinct temporal looking patterns during relational and non-relational choice trials, with children preferring relational matches after a brief comparison phase. A cluster-based analysis confirmed that children looked longer at relational than non-relational matches. These findings suggest that relational reasoning in preschoolers involves a dynamic comparison process, and eye-tracking provides valuable insight into this implicit cognitive process.","language":"eng","license":{"name":"","short_name":"","text":null,"url":""},"keywords":[{"word":"Psychology; Cognitive development; Language and thought; Eye tracking"}],"section":"Papers with Poster Presentation","is_remote":true,"remote_url":"https://escholarship.org/uc/item/1m86f5g8","frozenauthors":[{"first_name":"Antonia","middle_name":"","last_name":"Goetz","name_suffix":"","institution":"Western Sydney University","department":""},{"first_name":"Genevieve","middle_name":"L","last_name":"Quek","name_suffix":"","institution":"Western Sydney University","department":""},{"first_name":"Laura","middle_name":"Kathleen","last_name":"Fimmano","name_suffix":"","institution":"Western Sydney University","department":""},{"first_name":"Zoe-Vasilia","middle_name":"","last_name":"Fountotos","name_suffix":"","institution":"MARCS Institute","department":""},{"first_name":"Susan","middle_name":"","last_name":"Hespos","name_suffix":"","institution":"Western Sydney Univeristy","department":""}],"date_submitted":null,"date_accepted":null,"date_published":"2025-01-01T19:00:00+01:00","render_galley":null,"galleys":[{"label":"PDF","type":"pdf","path":"https://journalpub.escholarship.org/cognitivesciencesociety/article/49795/galley/37757/download/"}]}