Unit 1: Piaget's Thoughts and Stages on Cognitive Development

Question 1

What are Piaget’s thoughts on Cognitive Development during Infancy and Early Childhood?

Answer 1

Children and Adults think differently.
Children cannot use abstract logical thinking as they’re not mature enough.
Infants use egocentric thinking.
Children only begin to understand the world from other people’s point of view in the ‘concrete operational stage’.

Question 2

At what age is the ‘Sensorimotor Stage’?

Answer 2

From birth till 2 Years Old.

Question 3

At what age is the ‘Preoperational Stage’?

Answer 3

2-7 Years Old.

Question 4

At what age is the ‘Concrete Operational Stage’?

Answer 4

7-11 Years Old.

Question 5

What is conservation?

Answer 5

Conservation is the understanding that something stays the same in quantity even though its appearance changes.

Question 6

What happens during the ‘Sensorimotor Stage’?

Answer 6

It is stage where the infant discovers the difference between themselves and their environment. They will know if an object is there despite it being out of the field of sight. However, this requires a form of mental representation (schema) of the object - this is known as ‘object permanence’.

Question 7

What happens during the ‘Preoperational Stage’?

Answer 7

Young children can thing about things symbolically. Eg. A broom can be a horse. Their thinking is egocentric.

Question 8

What happens during the ‘Concrete Operational Stage’?

Answer 8

The beginning of the child’s cognitive development, they will begin to use logical or operational thought - a child can now conserve number, mass and weight along with the ability to think in their heads. They will also begin to decentralise their thinking.

Question 9

What happens during the ‘Formal Operational Stage’?

Answer 9

They develop the ability to think about abstract concepts and logically test hypothesises.