Cognitive Development Flashcards
Jean Piaget’s Theory
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Contemporary Views of Piaget’s Theory
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How to not take the mind for granted?
A. Physics Metaphor (mind is Ubiquitous) : appreciate the problem, open up your mind
B. Building a mind from Scratch: Language Comprehension and production (appreciate what our mind can do that technology scientists are trying so hard to recreate)
C. Think Critically
3 Theoretical issues that developmental psychologists focus on
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Aspect of Mind
Perception, action, cognition, emotion.
Level of Analysis
Cultural Social Behavioural Neural Physiological Genetic
Timeline
Conception to death - LIFE
Past to Future - EVOLUTION
Goal of Developmental Psychology
To research and expand.
To apply and address issues.
Education, clinical, consumer, organisational psychology.
Analysis
Breaking a system of brain down into component. Using or learning on one aspect of brain
Synthesis
About how components come together.
Studying and learning the aspects of brain together or develop ideas on how the aspects of brain can relate and be used together.
Think like Developmental Psychologist
> Think Critically- analyse and examine the reason of action rather than judging.
Theoretical Questions - Quantitative vs Qualitative change
- Nature vs. Nurture
- Domain Specific vs. Domain General
Quantitative vs Qualitative Change
Quantitative - numerically different
Qualitative change - New structure, ability or process (evolution)
From Nature (Plato) to Nurture (Locke)
Plato - Believes that human skills, ability, intelligence, perception or all aspects of brain are given by nature. We are talented as we are gifted with specifically by the nature. Organism (Human) comes preloaded with knowledge.
Lockes- The mind is a blank slate that requires learning and shaping.
Domain Specific vs Domain General
Are our mind supported by many specialised systems that evolved for specific domains? (Eg objects, people, language) - Preinstalled app
Or
Do we have a few general systems that can be used across many different domains? - General programs
Genetic Epistemology
The study of the origins of knowledge
Piagetian Theory
In the middle of reflex (nature) and Nurture (Reason) but more towards nurture .
—Constructivist- Child is not a blank slate, but does not come preloaded either.
> Child actively constructs increasingly complex knowledge (building blocks) and abilities out of simpler components “reflex”. They use reflex and develop it as they grow older.
—Domain General Mechanism
>Development involves learning mechanisms that apply across domains and there is NOT much of specialised system from SPECIFIC domain.
—Stage 3 Based
>Children travel through a series of stages as they develop new knowledge and abilities.
>Schema: Mechanism of Development
> Each stage forms a foundation for the next stage (children has to master the preceding stage before the next stage)
> Development is about “levelling up” or stepping up to the highest stage.
>Involve QUALITATIVE change (emergence of the new ability).
Piagetian theory of Mechanism of development (SCHEMA)
Schema - Child’s knowledge and way of interacting with the world.
Adaptation - How the child links the schema to experiencing the world
Piagetian 3 Key Milestone
Object Permanence - Pass A-not-B Task and invisible displacement task (from Stage 1- 2)
Mental Operators - Pass conservation Tasks (from Stage 2-3)
Mental Operators - Pass formal logic task (Stage 3-4)
Schema
Where a child codifies an object/ identifies and observe objects and how adult use such object around them. Therefore, learning how to use and interact such object themselves.
Adaptation
> When a child have a schema of an object and learns how to interact with it.
—Assimilation
—Accomodation
Assimilation (Adaptation)
Interpreting to make sense of schema through NEW/DIFFERENT EXPERIENCE.
Interprets a situation and fit it to their standard of schema
Accomodation (Adaptation)
Altering existing schema in response to new experience.
Accomodate their new experience by creating a new schema.
Equilibration (Adaptive balance)
Optimal fit to behave properly into environment
Too much assimilation - prevents adaptation to new experience or changes
Too much Accomodation - misunderstand unity or commonalities.
Stage 1 Piagetian Theory (0-2 years)
Sensori Motor
—Reflex
>rooting, grasp, moro (improve ability to control objects but limited understanding of the objects.
—Out of Sight, out of mind
—9 months they have control but no understanding about the object
—24 months - have object permanence where they have understanding of object and knows where to find it.
Memory
Piaget suggests that infants appear to appreciate more about the physical world than Piaget thought.
Methodological limitations can result in theoretical limitation
Nativism - Speike and Baillargeon
Argues that infants come “pre-loaded” with different types of core knowledge
- Physical Objects
- Number
- Agents.
Stage 2 Piagetian Theory (2-7)
Pre-operational- Object Permanence
> have object permanence and mentally represents object and events
EGOCENTRIC - They view problems on their own view point (they focus too much on one dimension of problem and fails to account the changes in another. Fails to use “MENTAL OPERATORS” - logical tools.
Fails Conservation test
Stage 3 Piagetian Theory (7-11 years)
Concrete Operational - Mental Operators
> concrete reasoning - Mental Operators “compensation Reversibility”
Decentre one dimension and capable of taking account of changes in objects.
Formal Logic - identifying the validity of conclusion based upon an argument’s form rather than its content. Children focus on the “real rules” rather than applying the case scenario unto the question.
Stage 4 Piagetian Theory (11+)
Formal Operational -Mental Operation
> Abstract Reasoning
They can manipulate changes in the situation and imagine possibilities.
can solve, “If A was B therefore, A is B”
Methods to study very young infants
Make the most of what they can do (reflexes)
- Suck - Have mother read a particular storybook everyday during trimester
- Kick
- Look
> Elaboration
Repetition
What are some physical principles that infants seem to appreciate before 6 months?
- Sounds
- Looks
- Kick
Nativism and how it differs from Piagetian Theory.
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