Humans are able to see, smell and hear at a much younger age than they are able to understand, think about and communicate their experiences. Basic perceptual development, such as the formation of the sensing organs, takes place within the womb. Conceptual development requires a higher level of brain organization and mental processing; however, even as adults, our perceptual ability continues to improve. We learn to pay attention to details that would have escaped us as children. We learn to focus on certain environmental stimulus and ignore others. Though basic perception occurs without effort, advanced and deliberate perception improves with time and practice.
Linguistic skill is a key component in conceptual development. When young people are able to describe their experiences to themselves and others, they gain greater understanding of those experiences. Language helps people generalize their experiences, notice patterns, anticipate the future and reflect upon the past. Many researchers believe that thought itself requires language. Diana Perez, instructor of at the Federal University of Santa Caratina and member of its Epistemology and Research Group, contends that humans can form prelinguistic or "holistic" thoughts with images and perception alone.
Perceptual development requires skills such as attention, memory and differentiation. To perceive the various colors on a vibrant wall, for example, and individual has to learn to pay attention to its diverse hues and images. The perception of internal emotions also requires a certain degree of memory and ability to differentiate from one moment to the next. A person who forgets his experiences from moment to moment will have difficulty experiencing the sensations of pleasure and pain.
The relationship between conceptual and perceptual development remains a compelling domain of inquiry among brain scientists, psychologists and philosophers. The degree that cognitive processes such as thinking and judging influence humans' perception of things is also a significant question for students of religion, anthropology and linguistics. Researchers and intellectuals continue to examine the relationship between these complex and interwoven processes.