Models of Sensory Deprivation: The Nature/Nurture Dichotomy and Spatial Representation in the Blind

It is argued that models of sensory deprivation often depend on a nativist versus empiricist dichotomy which has little basis in empirical fact. Fallacies about the nature of abilities and learning and about the interaction between sense modalities which follow from the dichotomy are examined in relation to explanations of spatial development in the blind. It is suggested that interactions between cognitive and perceptual factors need to be taken into account in order to explain the effects of sensory deprivation more adequately.