Cognitive development

Question 1

When does the Pre-operational stage occur?

Answer 1

2-7 years

Question 2

What occurs at the pre-operational stage?

Answer 2

Mental imagery but with no principled thought and failure to decenter (broaden attention to the various aspects of a problem)

Question 3

Define operational intelligence

Answer 3

Solving a problem by working through logical principles

Question 4

Name 2 Piagetian tests designed to reveal the quality of pre-operational thinking

Answer 4

Conservation and Class inclusion

Question 5

Define Conservation test

Answer 5

Understanding that changing the form or location of an object doesn’t change its mass, volume or amount

Question 6

What response do (pre-operational) children give in a Conservation test?

Answer 6

The child gives an intuitive answer instead of working out the correct response based on operational thought

Question 7

Why is operational intelligence necessary for a child?

Answer 7

So they can overcome egocentrism and free them of their highly subjective and intuitive view of the world

Question 8

When does the concrete operational stage occur?

Answer 8

7-12 years

Question 9

What happens in the concrete operational stage?

Answer 9

Principled thought confined to real-life problems

Question 10

What happens when concrete operational children do a Conservation task?

Answer 10

They give the correct answer and are able to provide logical justifications for their answer- but it is confined to real-life problems

Question 11

When does the Formal operational stage occur?

Answer 11

12+ years

Question 12

What occurs in the Formal operational stage?

Answer 12

Principled thought applied to abstract problems

Question 13

Name a Piagetian test designed to reveal the quality of formal-operational thinking

Answer 13

Hypothetico-deductive reasoning

Question 14

What did Margaret Donaldson do?

Answer 14

Challenged Piaget’s theory and findings- showed when problems are rephrased children are able to pass conservation tasks much earlier than previously thought

Question 15

What did Vygotsky emphasise?

Answer 15

The role of environment in development

Question 16

What did Vygotsky propose?

Answer 16

Learning is motivated by a need to interact with others

Question 17

Why did Vygotsky criticise Piaget’s stage theory?

Answer 17

He thought it was too individualistic

Question 18

Define linguistic relativity

Answer 18

Language shapes the culture and culture shapes the language

Question 19

What is the Zone of proximal development?

Answer 19

In order to learn something, the child needs to be cognitively ready

Question 20

In terms of social transmission, what is scaffolding?

Answer 20

The parent creates support structures to aid children’s learning

Question 21

Is Piaget’s view constructivist or social constructivism?

Answer 21

Constructivist

Question 22

Is Vygotsky’s view constructivist or social constructivism?

Answer 22

Social constructivism

Question 23

What is one problem with Piaget’s theory?

Answer 23

There’s little emphasis on social or emotional factors, nor on abnormal development

Question 24

What is one issue with developmental research?

Answer 24

Relies on subjective interpretation