Week 12 Flashcards
Thinking beyond “here and now”
more rationally and
systematically about abstract
& hypothetical concepts
Formal-Operational Stage
(11/12 years and beyond)
the ability to
reason logically and mentally
manipulate ideas and reflect on
situations that are not real or tangible
◦ E.g., hypothetical third eye
◦ E.g., living on a planet without plants
Abstract thinking
Propositional thought
The ability to determine whether a set of propositions
(statements) are logical based on the wording of the statement, without having to experience the situation firsthand
“If A then B. A occurs, therefore B must follow.”
1. If you cut an apple with a knife/feather, you will get two
pieces
2. Mike cuts an apple with a knife/feather
3. How many pieces does he have?
- Hypothetical-deductive Reasoning
- Two example of (HDR) Piagetian tasks
- A systematic, scientific approach to problem solving in which they test
hypotheses about variables that might influence an outcome to arrive at
(deduce) a conclusion. - Combinations of liquids problem & Pendulum problem
Evaluating Piaget’s Theory
Contributions…
– Founded discipline of cognitive development
– Children’s active role
– Overview of changes in thinking
– practical implications
Challenges…
– Stages like? Less consistent in real life.
– Performance or competence?
– Vague in processes and mechanisms.
– Valued little the social and cultural
influences
____ perform better than _ on TOM tasks
Adolescents, children
Point of View tasks
Teens’ improved ability to take
the perspective of others
◦ Perspective taking = RT (1st -
3rd ) decreased with age for
individuals 8-36-yr-olds
(Choudhury et al., 2006)
◦ Affective TOM more difficult
than cognitive TOM
In Adolescent Egocentrism
Self-focus intensifies as a unique form of
egocentrism that makes it difficult for teens
to understand others’ perspectives
Adolescents believe their feelings are vastly
unique and tend to exaggerate differences
between their own experiences (of high, special
importance) and those of others. (absorption in
their unique life stories)
Personal fable
Adolescence: intense preoccupation
about what others think about them (ruminations),
exaggerated perception that others are attending
to everything they say and do
Imaginary audience
moral reasoning task in
which individuals are presented with scenes of moral dilemmas and are
asked to make decisions about each dilemma.
E.g., whether and why report a cheating in an exam? Stealing?
◦ Low level: personal consequences (e.g., get caught)
◦ High level: fairness and respect (e.g., respect others’ belonging)
13-20-yrs-olds: Moral reasoning relates closely to cognitive development (e.g.,
cognitive flexibility, conceptual reasoning, verbal fluency)
So-moral tasks
Does moral reasoning = moral
behavior?
Not always
In Moral Theory, the idea Many
factors come together to determine how a person responds is representative of
Social domain theory (
- Abstract thinking
- Propositional thinking
- Hypothetical‐deductive thinking
are all cognitive achievements of the
Formal-Operational Stage
(11/12 years and beyond)
Adolescent Language & Literacy: Vocabulary & Grammar
Academic vocabulary & language (gain 10-15 words/day)
Increasingly using complex grammatical constructions with embedded clauses (i.e., statements nested within other statements)
Adolescent Language & Literacy: Reading and Writing
Academic reading & writing skills:
◦ Unpack complex words (academic vocabulary)
◦ Understand complex sentences (grammar)
◦ Connect ideas (e.g., connectives such as
“although”, “however”)
◦ Track themes
◦ Appreciate organizational logic of texts
present ideas thematically and
logically and tailor it to a specific audience
Writing
Adolescent Academics: Gender Differences
Data across 65 nations: Boys > girls in mathematics, girls > boys in
reading/literacy (Reilly, 2012)
◦ Gendered socialization
◦ Cultural messages & stereotypes: The brilliance & genius of male-dominated disciplines
-
Boys are 3 times more likely to study physics and math;
-** Girls are more likely to study chemistry and biology.** - Less than 5% of girls pursue subjects such as engineering and technology
Gender differences: Gendered Socialization
Parents read more to girls than
boys
Boys play more puzzles and
blocks (spatial and math skills
related to STEM)
Boys spend more time playing
video games. Gaming supports
executive functioning
(attention and RT) related to
STEM achievements (Granic et
al., 2014)
Gender Differences:
Cultural Messages & Stereotypes
◦ Men better at “analyzing systems”,
◦ Women better at “understanding emotions
( book “The essential Difference”, Baron-Cohen, 2024)
A**cademics perceived “innate talent” to be necessary for male-dominant fields. **Female-dominant fields require little innate talent
compared to male-dominant fields.
Components of school engagement
Behavioral engagement (i.e., learning activities)
◦ Emotional engagement (i.e., affective attitudes and a sense of belonging to school)
◦ Cognitive engagement (i.e., self-regulated approach to learning, like effective strategies)
________ relates to school
performance & future educational
ambitions
School engagement
Academic motivation declines through
______
adolescence
-◦ Can lead to a snowball effect of declining grades
◦ High motivation maintains grades
Motvation and Academics
Motivation predicts intelligence and standardized test scores
◦ Very high scores: High aptitude & motivation
◦ Low sores: low aptitude, motivation, or both
◦ Incentives improve low-scoring but not high-scoring
adolescents’ scores (Duckworth et al, 2011)
◦ Concept of “grit” (what’s needed to do well)
Factors Explaining Motivation
1.Choice Matters
2.Goal orientation
3.Expectations for success
4.Test Anxiety
5.Task Value
Motivation Factor: success ≠ enjoyment, but choice (choose to do) = higher motivation
Choice Matters
Motivation Factor: Performance (outcome) vs. mastery (learning)
Goal orientation
Motivation Factor: (“I believe I can do it well”) positively
predicts grade/performance
Expectations for success
Motivation Factor: fear of failing
◦ Worry: negative thoughts “what if I fail?”
◦ Negative emotionality: negative feelings and
somatic symptoms
Test Anxiety
Motivation Factor: Task Value
Subjective value a person assigns to a task, which depends on:
◦ Interest in the material: enjoyable/rewarding?
◦ Perceived attainment value of material: define
identify (e.g., “math whiz”)
◦ Utility value: useful for future life
◦ Cost: emotional cost (boredom, stress) and
time/effort demand
Peers effects on individuals in the Academic content is “________”
“Bi-directional”
- Similarity of peers in academic engagement and performance mean peers can have positive or negative influences on academics
Quality of student-teacher relationship in adolescence
◦ Generally declines from middle childhood
◦ Perceptions of teacher support relate to high
performance, but high control can backfire
When victims fear confirming a negative belief
about their social group, they experience
anxiety and lowered performance
Stereotype threat
Neighborhood-intervention
the children of families moved to wealthier neighborhoods more
likely to attend college, early more as adults and less likely to grow up to be single parentsNeighborhood-intervention
