The concept of object permanence is best characterized as:

• A. Objects disappear when hidden
• B. Out of sight, still exists
• C. Objects vanish when unseen
• D. Objects cease to exist when hidden

Answer: (B)

Object permanence is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they are not in view. This means that when a toy is hidden, it still exists and can be found later. The statement that things out of sight still exist best captures this idea, because it directly expresses that existence is independent of perception at the moment. In development, infants gradually learn this, showing through their actions that hidden objects haven’t vanished, even if their first attempts might be imperfect. The other options imply that objects disappear or cease to exist when hidden, which contradicts how children actually come to know the world persists even when not visible.