Chapter 5

Question 1

scheme

Answer 1

an organized pattern of sensorimotor functioning

Question 2

assimilation

Answer 2

the process in which people understand an experience in terms of their current stage of cognitive development and way of thinking

Question 3

accommodation

Answer 3

changes in existing way of thinking that occur in response to encounters with new stimuli or events

Question 4

sensorimotor stage (of cognitive development)

Answer 4

Piaget’s initial major stage of cognitive development, which can be broken down into six substages

Question 5

goal-directed behavior

Answer 5

behavior in which several schemes are combined and coordinated to generate a single act to solve a problem

Question 6

object permanence

Answer 6

the realization that people and objects exist even when they cannot be seen

Question 7

mental representation

Answer 7

an internal image of past event or object

Question 8

deferred imitation

Answer 8

an act in which a person who is no longer present is imitated by children who have witnessed a similar act

Question 9

preoperative stage

Answer 9

according to Piaget, the stage from approximately age 2 to age 7 in which children’s use of symbolic thinking grows, mental reasoning emerges, and the use of concepts increases

Question 10

operations

Answer 10

organized, formal, logical mental processes

Question 11

symbolic functioning

Answer 11

the ability to use a mental symbol, a word, or an object to stand for or represent something that s not physically present

Question 12

centration

Answer 12

the process of concentrating on one limited aspect of a stimulus and ignoring other aspects

Question 13

conservation

Answer 13

the knowledge that quantity is unrelated to the arrangement and physical appearance of objects

Question 14

transformation

Answer 14

the process in which one state is changed into another

Question 15

egocentric thought

Answer 15

thinking that does not take into account the viewpoints of others

Question 16

intuitive thought

Answer 16

thinking that reflects preschoolers’ use of primitive reasoning and their avid acquisition of knowledge about the world

Question 17

acquisitive stage

Answer 17

according to Schaie, the first stage of cognitive development, encompassing all of childhood and adolescence, in which the main developmental task is to acquire information

Question 18

achieving stage

Answer 18

the point reached by young adults in which intelligence is applied to specific situations involving the attainment of long-term goals regarding careers, family, and societal contributions

Question 19

responsible stage

Answer 19

the stage where the major concerns of middle-aged adults relate to their personal situations, including protecting and nourishing their spouses, families, and careers

Question 20

executive stage

Answer 20

the period in middle adulthood when people take a broader perspective than earlier, including concerns about the world

Question 21

reintegrative stage

Answer 21

the period of late adulthood in which the focus is on tasks that have personal meaning

Question 22

zone of proximal development (ZPD)

Answer 22

according to Vygotsky, the level at which a child can almost, but not fully, perform a task independently, but can do so with the assistance of someone more competent

Question 23

scaffolding

Answer 23

the support for learning and problem solving that encourages independence and growth