Neo-Piagetian Theories

Question 1

outline neo-piagetian theories

Answer 1

• incorporate aspects of information processing theory with stages
• explain individual differences in development
• use principles from social cognitive theory

Question 2

what are the four stages of Robbie Case’s theory of development? (PIDV - penis in da vagina)

Answer 2

predimensional (0-2)
inter-relational (2-8)
dimensional (5-11)
vectorial (11-19)

Question 3

what did Robbie Case propose was the key for developing through the stages? (to do w a form of memory)

Answer 3

increases in working memory capacity and central processing speed leads to advancement through the stages

Question 4

what helps increase working memory?

Answer 4

• automaticity of processes - increased efficiency
• brain maturation - myelination, changes in brain activity
• formation of central conceptual structures

Question 5

what is a central conceptual structure in regards to problem solving?

Answer 5

a mental network of concepts used to represent and assign meaning to problems

Question 6

what is a central conceptual structure used for?

Answer 6

solving problems

Question 7

outline Siegler’s overlapping waves

Answer 7

children generate strategies to try and solve a problem and these compete/overlap

Question 8

Siegler and Robinson (1982) found children to use the same or a different strategy on an addition problem task?

Answer 8

only 20% of children would use the same strategy

Question 9

what are the 5 components of Siegler’s overlapping waves theory for problem solving in children?

Answer 9

• acquiring new strategies
• mapping strategy to new components
• strengthening strategy w/ new and old problems
• refining choice of strategy
• increasingly effective execution of new strategies

Question 10

what is attention?

Answer 10

identifying and selecting sensory input for more detailed processing

Question 11

what did Hood (1995) find regarding infants and attention?

Answer 11

young infants struggle with shifting attention - ‘sticky fixation’ or ‘obligatory attention’

Question 12

what is attention like for 2-3 month old infants?

Answer 12

they can disengage attention and have smooth eye movements

Question 13

outline attention deficits

Answer 13

• a struggle with attending relevant info and remembering irrelevant info
• process irrelevant verbatim details
• cannot inhibit task-irrelevant responses - e.g. imitate instead of adjusting behaviour

Question 14

what is voluntary attention?

Answer 14

taking control of attention and shifting away from salient but irrelevant info - develops significantly across childhood

Question 15

how is memory foundational to information processing theory?

Answer 15

it determines how information is stored by the cognitive system

Question 16

outline infantile amnesia

Answer 16

-lack of memory capacity
- evidence in infants - habituation/novelty, deferred imitation

Question 17

outline the role of brain development for memory

Answer 17

brain needs to integrate info from multiple areas for memory e.g. hippocampus and PFC
- most of H is developed at birth, but some parts continue to develop
- PFC takes longer to be developed - LTM

Question 18

outline working memory development

Answer 18

• limited capacity store for retaining info while performing mental operations on that info
• WM ability increases steadily w age between 4-15 - large differences between children of the same age

Question 19

what is recall?

Answer 19

ability to reproduce information from memory

Question 20

what is recognition?

Answer 20

ability to identify person, object or quality that was observed previously

Question 21

are infants better at recall or recognition?

Answer 21

recognition

Question 22

why is recall harder than recogniton?

Answer 22

• recall relies on info to have been encoded and stored for a certain period of time
• a lack of metacognition

Question 23

why do children not use more effective strategies with tasks?

Answer 23

• lack of cognitive capacity
• more sophisticated strategies require language and knowledge