Generalization to novel views from view combination

Abstract

Four experiments examined whether or not exposure to two views (A and B) of a novel object improves generalization to a third view (C) through view combination on tasks that required symmetry or recognition memory decisions. The results of Experiment I indicated that exposure to either View A or View B alone produced little or no generalization to View C on either task. The results of Experiment 2 indicated that exposure to both View A and View B did improve generalization to View C, but only for symmetrical objects. Experiment 3 replicated this generalization advantage for symmetrical but not asymmetrical objects, when objects were well learned at study. The results of Experiment 4 showed that Views A and B did not have to be presented consecutively to facilitate responses to View C. Together, the pattern of results suggests that generalization to novel views does occur through view combination of temporally separated views, but it is more likely to be observed with symmetrical objects.