Week 16: Theories of Developmental Psychology

Question 0

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

Answer 0

Believed that children thought differently then adults and that all children experienced similar obstacles in terms of cognitive development. Instead of one long continuous process of learning Piaget proposed that there are 4 distinct stages of development and once a child masters that particulater stage they can move to next stage.

Question 1

Schema steps

Answer 1

Assimilate- incorporate new ideas to our Schema that don’t need to be revised in anyway

Accommodate - incorporate ideas into our Schema that aren’t representative of the Schema so we have to reevaluate the parameters or believe it’s an exception

Equilibrate - reaches a point where we have made encountered so much information that does not directly fit into our Schema that it no longer holds true we must form an entirely new schemata. It will be more sophisticated and less vulnerable to contradiction.

Question 2

Sensorimotor stage

Answer 2

0-2 years

Under 8 months have no concept of object permanence (significant milestone)
Direct interactions with environment touching sensing and moving allows infants to interact with the world.

Question 3

Preoperational stage

Answer 3

2-7 years

Cognitive thinking shows in Pretend play and start to use symbols and drawings to express ideas. Egocentric and can not apply reverse mental processes. The significant developmental milestone is problems with conservation.

Question 4

Concrete operational stage

Answer 4

7-11 years

Children understand conservation. They can carry out mathematical operations and reverse processes. Physically present objects but hard to imagine mental transformations from hypothetical objects.

Question 5

Formal operational Stage

Answer 5

12+

Capacity for abstract thoughts and hypothetical thinking develops. Reasoning and scientific thinking is possible.

Question 6

Why Piaget doesn’t work

Answer 6

• doesn’t account for variability in children some children show understanding of conservation earlier than the age shown
• cognitive capacities of children is much greater than piaget thought ex: Baillergeon showed object permanence in children 3.5 months
• emphasizes the physical world more than the social environment

Question 7

Vygotsky

Answer 7

• Cognitive Development theory = sociocultural theory

- emphasis on the environment and cultural social influences

Question 8

Intersubjectivity

Answer 8

An understanding between 2 individuals that lets them effectively communicate about the same topic.

Question 9

Social referencing

Answer 9

The tendency to look to another person for clarification in situations of ambiguity.

Question 10

Joint attention

Answer 10

The ability to share attention with another about the same object

Question 11

Social scaffolding

Answer 11

The process of learning with guidance from someone more knowledgable who can help you reach a greater potential than otherwise would have achieved.

Question 12

Zone of proximal development

Answer 12

An area that contains skills that are not too easy or too difficult to be achieved (resulting in boredom or frustration) but skills that are just out of reach that are achievable with social scaffolding.

Question 13

Speech and language (Piaget vs Vygotsky)

Answer 13

When children in the preppie rational stage use self-talk piaget would argue they are egocentric and do not see how speech is communicative with others.

Vygotsky would say this is a form of self declaration/mental progression/ way to internalize the linguistic processes until it is mastered.

2 different views