The violation-of-expectation paradigm: A conceptual overview

The Violation-of-Expectation (VoE) paradigm is one of the most widely used methods to study infant cognition. However, there is still debate and controversy surrounding how it should be implemented and whether it yields clear data bearing unambiguously on the hypotheses at test. Studies adopting VoE tasks routinely address these problems by including a number of follow up experiments aimed at ruling out alternative interpretations. However, these rarely succeed in dispelling the skeptical attitude and the objections raised against the so-called ‘rich interpretation’ of the data. Here we offer a summary of the major strengths of the VoE paradigm and the most common criticisms raised against the ‘rich interpretation’ of infants’ looking behavior. Next, we review the rebuttals of these criticisms. This article is meant to help the reader develop a fair view of the VoE paradigm that, while maintaining a healthy critical attitude, does not fall prey of a priori skepticism about the empirical fruits accumulated in the past five decades and the potential of this method for future research.