The kittens had to stand on a clear glass platform which was inside a tall cylinder of which the inner surface was covered with either horizontal or vertical black-and-white stripes. Additionally, there were no corners or edges in their environment. The kittens’ visual field was restricted , as they were required to wear a wide black collar. This prevented them from seeing their own body. Blakemore and Cooper defended the ethics of the study by stating that the kittens did not seem distressed, as they inspected the walls of the tube for long periods of time.

After five months, exposure to the experimental conditions ended and the kittens were then placed for several hours a week from their dark cage to a small, well-lit furnished room. The Dependent Variable was then measured: this was whether kittens raised in a horizontal environment could detect vertically aligned objects and vice-versa. After 7 and a half months, two of the kittens, one from each environment were anaesthetised and their neurophysiology was examined.

There was recovery of some deficiencies from their early deprivation. After about 10 hours the kittens showed visual placing and some startled responses; they could also easily jump from a chair to the floor. But the kittens did suffer some permanent damage such as trying to touch things well beyond their reach and following objects with clumsy head movements.