... influence of heredity and environment in perception has a long history. The first nativists appeared in the 17th century, the earliest representatives were the French philosopher Decartes (1638, cited in Smith, Cowie and Blades, 2003) and the German philosopher Kant (1781, cited in Smith, Cowie and Blades, 2003). Both claimed that perceptual capacities, like space and depth perception, were inborn. Later, in the early 20th century, Gestalt psychologists further supported this view by claiming that certain perceptual skills exist from the moment of birth because of the constructional features of the nervous system, and that these skills develop through maturation and interaction with the environment. Furthermore, gestalt psychologists emphasising the importance of instincts, which are inborn and responsible for starting the process of development in neonates. They also claimed that infants are born with the ability to order and arrange their perceptual world. The empiricist view was developed by Locke ...

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