Talk:Object permanence

Stages
The stages are well referenced at Theory of cognitive development. Before merely copying these over, I wondered whether these stages belonged in this article at all. Any thoughts? Finereach (talk) 18:24, 15 November 2009 (UTC)
 * On further thought, I will just copy them over at some point. Finereach (talk) 18:30, 15 November 2009 (UTC)
 * On third thoughts, the references are not as applicable as I had hoped, I will see if I can dig out something more relevant. Finereach (talk) 18:44, 15 November 2009 (UTC)

I am looking at my child development textbook and also this page. I am confused, because it looks like these stages are not part of object permanance. The textbook has the stages that you have listed under object permance as stages under the final stage of Piaget's last stage of sensorimotor development. —Preceding unsigned comment added by 71.67.255.49 (talk) 00:20, 5 February 2010 (UTC)

Piaget's Stages in Object Permanence
This section is very good, but is there not criticisms of this theory as some believe object permanence occurs before a child is able to speak? Perhaps this should be stated in the article. Also, while parts of Piaget's theory are contested, it would still be a good idea to get more information on his theory and studies from his own articles. Lauradronen (talk) 18:48, 9 November 2011 (UTC)

Object Permanence vs Quantum Mechanics
With recent developments in quantum mechanics, isn't object permanence more of an assumption than an understanding? When the idea of object permanence first came up in psychology I'm sure we didn't have the technology to determine if something is there when it is not being observed. We've already proved that individual particles, atoms and molecules are not classified as such until the are observed. Soon they may very well prove that objects are not actually there when there is nothing to observe them, they only have a chance of being there when you do. Cyrus40540057 (talk) 02:39, 28 March 2014 (UTC)

In Animals
"...a few species of birds such as the carrion crow and food-storing magpies."

I'm very surprised that there is no mention at all of Irene Pepperberg's thirty-plus year research with Alex, the African Grey parrot. Pepperberg published quite extensively in various journals, including, I think, journals in the area of psychology. I know that she described object permanence in Alex, because that was where I first read about the subject. Someone might want to read up on her research and summarize it here. (She also concluded that large parrots have the intelligence of somewhere between a two- and five-year-old child.)

I know that large birds other than carrion crows and food-storing magpies possess object permanence, because I have directly observed it in my Triton cockatoo. As one example, if I go and lie down very quietly behind our sectional sofa, where he can't see me from his stand, he will climb down from the stand and walk along the top of the sofa, periodically looking over the top until finally he spots me, whereupon his behavior indicates, "Hah! I FOUND you!" If he didn't possess object permanance, then once I was out of sight he wouldn't come looking for me.

As another example, one of our favorite games is when I use a permanent marker to draw eyes and a smile on the tip of my index finger. Then, I work it like a puppet and make it peep out of a hole in a cardboard box. I make it say "Hi!" and he responds "Hi!" Then, I make it disappear inside the box, and say, "Where did he go?" Invariably, he walks around and looks on the other side of the box to try to find Finger-Man. He proceeds to keep looking around, off the edge of the sofa, under the pillow. All the while I'm saying, "Huh, I don't know WHERE he went..." If he didn't possess object permanence, then he wouldn't show the slightest interest in finding this creature.

I'm pretty sure that all large parrots and cockatoos possess this same ability. At any rate, I thought I'd point out that you are giving exceedingly short shrift to birds, and especially to Irene Pepperberg's study of object permanence in birds, as part of her lifetime study of bird intelligence.

Specifically, see the following links:

(*) Development of Piagetian Object Permanence in a Grey Parrot (Psittacus erithacus) (PDF File)

(*) Alex (parrot) (See first paragraph under "Accomplishments")

--Mrs rockefeller (talk) 18:51, 22 August 2014 (UTC)

Crying when parents are away
I was reading about object permanence as something that happens around 6 months however I believe my infant cries at night expecting to be comforted and is 3 months old. Does this mean my infant does not think I exist but that I can come into existence if they cry? — Preceding unsigned comment added by 73.167.35.42 (talk) 22:24, 1 January 2015 (UTC)

Contradicts Quantum Mechanics?
Doesn't the idea of wave function collapse in a sense nullify the validity of object permanence, in a quantum mechanical sense? In certain versions of the theory, especially Many Worlds, objects can be said to not really exist until their influence enters the observer's 'sphere of influence', when they're presented with a random outcome for that object based on various possibilities. Couldn't a person with a limited sense of 'object permanence' simply be sensing a quantum mechanical truth that there is no real object permanence? --IronMaidenRocks (talk) 06:48, 18 June 2015 (UTC)

In adults
Is it possible for neuro divergence, brain damage, etc, to hinder an adult's object permanence? For example, someone who lives in a hotel that gets cleaned every day might not be used to the idea that an object left in the room by the person will still be there a day later. 2603:8001:5B01:93E3:15E3:FD46:2204:13BC (talk) 22:25, 16 June 2022 (UTC)
 * I came to the page wondering this. I've started to see memes around ADHD and object permanence and I know that I personally do forget (some) things exist if I can't see them in my home. Shelves instead of cupboards help. StaticSan (talk) 05:48, 15 October 2022 (UTC)