theories of development Flashcards
what is developmental psychology
focuses on how human beings grow, change, adapt, and mature across various life stages
looks at how thinking, feeling and behaviour change throughout a person’s life
theories of continuous change vs stage theories
development is life long, continuous experience
development is a succession of changes that produce different behaviours in different age-specific life periods called stages
developmental questions
continuous change or stage theories?
domain specific or general development
nature or nurture? (nativists vs empiricists)
what are Piaget’s stages of cognitive development
0-2 years - sensorimotor (understands world through senses and actions)
2-7 years - pre-operational (understands world through symbols)
7-11 years - concrete operational (understands world through logical thinking)
11+ years - formal operational (understands world through abstract thinking and scientific reasoning)
key aspects of Piaget theory, in terms of schemas, equilibrium, adaptation
Piaget said we have schemas
when there is harmony between schemas and experience, there is said to be equilibrium
when there is conflict between schemas and experience, there is said to be disequilibrium
therefore, there is adaptation, which can be broken down into assimilation (using existing schema to interpret new experiences) and accommodation (modifies existing schemas or creates new schemas to fit reality
Piaget - what is conservation?
awareness that altering a substance’s appearance does not change its basic properties
what are the criticisms of Piaget’s theory
underestimates the cognitive abilities of infants and children
and overestimates the cognitive abilities of adolescents and adults
studies showing ages of the stages of development may be much different to what piaget suggseted
many of Piaget’s methods were overly complex
underestimated role of culture and formal education on cognition
Vygotsky - social constructivism
knowledge constructed through social interaction
child viewed as an apprentice, rather than a scientist
Vygotsky - what are elementary and higher cognitive functions
elementary:
- not unique to humans
- innate
- involuntary and unconscious
higher:
- unique to humans
- socially constricted
- voluntary and conscious
Vygotsky believed that cognitive development occurs as a function of a child’s interactions with partners who are more knowledgeable than themselves (MKO)
Vygotsky - what is internalisation
reformulation of social functions into psychological functions
Vygotsky - language/speech
social -> private -> inner speech
Vygotsky - what is the zone of proximal development
distance between actual developmental level and the level of potential development
what are the strengths of Vygotsky’s ideas
helps explain cultural variations
implications for education
