Cognitive Foundations Flashcards
What is adolescence known for cognitively?
- poor decision making
- risky behaviours
- emotional and irrational thinking
Describe the rapid synaptic growth in the adolescent brain.
- rapid increase in synaptic connections
- thickening of connections
- overproduction of connections
- happens primarily in frontal lobes
Describe the synaptic pruning in the adolescent brain.
- use it or lose it
- focusing on efficiency
What is myelination?
- a blanket of fat wraps around the nerve cell’s axon
- increases the speed of electrical signals
- allows for better executive functioning and inhibitory control
- functioning becomes less flexible
Describe the cerebellum growth in the adolescent brain?
- cerebellum = lower part of the brain
- important for certain higher functions (decision making, social skills)
- last structure of the brain to stop growing (in mid-20’s)
Describe the basic principles of Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
- described development based on cognitive stages
- development occurs through maturation
- biology is the driving for behind advancing through the stages
Describe the sensorimotor stage of cognitive development.
Age: 0-2
Characteristics: learning to coordinate senses with motor activities
Describe the preoperational stage of cognitive development.
Age: 2-7
Characteristics: limited use of mental operations but able to understand symbolic representation (e.g., language)
Describe the concrete operations stage of cognitive development.
Age: 7-11
Characteristics: capable of mental operations but only in concrete terms
- difficulty thinking hypothetically
Describe the formal operations stage of cognitive development.
Age: 11-15/20
Characteristics: capable of logic and abstract thinking, forming hypotheses and testing them
- thinking is more complex
- can think about thinking (metacognition)
I know to gather more information before making decisions. What part of formal operations am I?
Logical and systemic thinking
- hypothetical-deductive reasoning
I can use information in new ways (e.g., symbols, ideas, concepts). What part of formal operations am I?
Abstract thinking
I can think about thinking. What part of formal operations am I?
Metacognition
What are the more complex thinking aspects of formal operations?
- ability to perceive and integrate multiple aspects of a situation
- engage in critical thinking
- understand literal meaning
- understand subtle meanings (e.g., metaphors)
- pick up on meanings in tone and context (e.g., sarcasm)
What are the limits to Piaget’s theory?
- ignores individual differences
- ignores environmental influences (education, culture, experience)
- discounts the role of emotions
Describe the information processing model of development
- a computer model approach to understanding cognition
- emphasizes attention and memory (storage and retrieval)
- views the brain as a machine
- processing speeds increase
What are the limitations of the information processing model of cognitive development.
- reductionism,
- humans can feel things and experience tings subjectively
- does not consider self reflection, awareness or emotions
What is the social information processing model of cognitive development?
- cyclical cognitive process
- influenced by past experiences, mood, temperament, emotions
Define social cognitions.
How people think about other, social relationships and social institutions
What influences social cognitions?
- theory of mind
- perspective taking
- egocentrism
- personal fable (feeling unique)
What improvements occur during the development of adolescent thinking?
- ability to analyze and make judgements about information
- can consider several different kinds of knowledge
- utilize metacognition’- consider others’ perspectives
- think critically
Describe the ability of decision making in adolescents.
- decision making competence generally increases with age
- poor at anticipating consequences
- leads to risky behaviours
Adolescents and emerging adults take more ____ than children or adults.
Risks
Why do adolescents and emerging adults take more risks.
- They do not think about the risks and/or perceive them as less risky than they are
- temporal gap
What is the temporal gap (risky window)?
- puberty starts at 8 (extreme emotions, reward seeking, feeling grown up)
- cognitive development is ongoing (impulse control, emotion regulation, resistance to peer influence, delay of gratification)
- in that period of time, there is a “gap” in ability to assess risk while simultaneously craving thrill
Describe the brain development in emerging adulthood.
- continued myelination and synaptic pruning
- decrease in grey matter (brain cells)
- increase in white matter (myelinated axons)
- results in greater processing speed, efficiency and fluid intelligence
- increased self control, reasoning, planning (prefrontal cortex)
What is post-formal thinking and when does it occur?
Involves a greater awareness of the complexity of real-life situations. Occurs in emerging adult.
What are the types of post-formal thinking?
- pragmatism
- dialectical thought
- reflective judgement
What is pragmatism?
adapting logical thinking to the practical constraints of real-life situations
What is dialectical thought?
Growing awareness that:
- not all information is available
- most problems don’t have a single solution
What is reflective judgement?
The capacity to evaluate the accuracy and logical coherence of evidence and arguments
- dualistic/multiple thinking
- recognize multiple viable options
- recognize and consider competing points (relativism)
- commitment to a point of view
What are the limitations of post-formal thinking?
- ignores environment (focuses only on maturation)
- reflective judgement is more common in individuals with higher education
What is invulnerability?
the belief that one is incapable of being wounded, injured or harmed
What happens when adolescents and emerging adults feel invincible?
- more risk taking behaviours
- delinquency and aggression
- have more favourable attitudes towards risk taking
- drug use
What are the 2 types of invulnerability?
1) danger invulnerability
2) psychological invulnerability
What accounts for risky behaviours in emerging adolescence?
invulnerability and increased opportunity
- new independence
- normal for that age group
- availability (legal age)
