AP Psychology 3.4: Theories of Cognitive Development

Question 1

What is cognitive development?

Answer 1

Cognitive development is how an individual’s thinking and skills change over time.

Question 2

Who was Jean Piaget?

Answer 2

A psychologist who studied how children learn and think about the world.

Question 3

What is a schema?

Answer 3

A mental framework used to understand and organize information.

Question 4

What is an example of a simple schema in a child?

Answer 4

A young child might think all furry four-legged animals are dogs.

Question 5

How do schemas change over time?

Answer 5

They become more detailed and accurate as people grow and learn.

Question 6

What are the two processes by which schemas develop?

Answer 6

Assimilation and accommodation.

Question 7

What is assimilation?

Answer 7

Incorporating new information into an existing schema without changing it.

Question 8

What is an example of assimilation?

Answer 8

Adding a Tibetan Mastiff to your existing schema for dogs.

Question 9

What is accommodation?

Answer 9

Changing an existing schema or creating a new one to incorporate new information.

Question 10

What is an example of accommodation?

Answer 10

A child realizing a cat is different from a dog and creating a separate schema for it.

Question 11

How is continuous development defined?

Answer 11

A gradual, ongoing process with small changes over time.

Question 12

How is discontinuous development defined?

Answer 12

Development happens in stages with big changes at specific points.

Question 13

Did Piaget believe development was continuous or discontinuous?

Answer 13

Discontinuous – he proposed development occurs in four stages.

Question 14

What are Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development?

Answer 14

Sensorimotor, Preoperational, Concrete Operational, and Formal Operational.

Question 15

What age range is associated with the sensorimotor stage?

Answer 15

Birth to about 2 years old.

Question 16

How do children learn during the sensorimotor stage?

Answer 16

Through senses and physical interactions like grabbing and pushing.

Question 17

What is object permanence?

Answer 17

The understanding that objects exist even when they’re not visible.

Question 18

What age range is associated with the preoperational stage?

Answer 18

Around 2 to 6 or 7 years old.

Question 19

What is symbolic thinking?

Answer 19

The ability to think about things that aren’t directly in front of you.

Question 20

What is pretend play?

Answer 20

When children use imagination to act out scenarios with toys or others.

Question 21

What is animism in children?

Answer 21

Giving human-like qualities to non-living things.

Question 22

What is conservation?

Answer 22

Understanding that quantity remains the same despite changes in shape.

Question 23

What is reversibility?

Answer 23

The ability to mentally reverse an action, like realizing 4 - 2 = 2 if 2 + 2 = 4.

Question 24

What is egocentrism in the preoperational stage?

Answer 24

Difficulty in seeing the world from another person’s point of view.

Question 25

What was Piaget's "Three Mountains Task"?

Answer 25

A test where children had to identify what a doll would see from a different perspective.

Question 26

What does success or failure in the Three Mountains Task indicate?

Answer 26

Success indicates a child is overcoming egocentrism.

Question 27

What is theory of mind?

Answer 27

Understanding that others have thoughts, feelings, and perspectives different from your own.

Question 28

Around what age does theory of mind typically begin to develop?

Answer 28

Toward the end of the preoperational stage, around 4-6 years old.

Question 29

What age range is associated with the concrete operational stage?

Answer 29

About 6 or 7 to 11 years old.

Question 30

What cognitive abilities emerge in the concrete operational stage?

Answer 30

Logical thinking, classification, seriation, conservation, and reversibility.

Question 31

What is classification?

Answer 31

The ability to organize objects by multiple attributes (e.g., color and shape).

Question 32

What is seriation?

Answer 32

Arranging items in order, such as from shortest to longest.

Question 33

What kind of thinking still challenges children in this stage?

Answer 33

Abstract and hypothetical thinking.

Question 34

What age does the formal operational stage begin?

Answer 34

Around 11 or 12 years old.

Question 35

What abilities emerge during the formal operational stage?

Answer 35

Abstract thinking, advanced logic, hypothetical reasoning, and deductive reasoning.

Question 36

What is deductive reasoning?

Answer 36

Starting with a general principle and applying it to a specific situation.

Question 37

Did Piaget believe everyone reaches the formal operational stage?

Answer 37

No, he believed not everyone fully achieves it.

Question 38

What defines the sensorimotor stage?

Answer 38

Learning through sensory experiences and object permanence.

Question 39

What defines the preoperational stage?

Answer 39

Use of mental symbols, pretend play, animism, egocentrism, and theory of mind.

Question 40

What defines the concrete operational stage?

Answer 40

Logical thinking about concrete events, conservation, reversibility, classification, and seriation.

Question 41

What defines the formal operational stage?

Answer 41

Abstract, logical, hypothetical, and philosophical thinking.

Question 42

Who was Lev Vygotsky?

Answer 42

A psychologist who emphasized social and environmental influences on learning.

Question 43

What is Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory?

Answer 43

A theory that emphasizes learning through social interaction, culture, and environment.

Question 44

What is the Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)?

Answer 44

The range between what a child can do alone and what they can do with help.

Question 45

What is scaffolding?

Answer 45

Providing just enough support to help a learner progress to the next level.

Question 46

How should teachers use scaffolding?

Answer 46

By guiding learners without giving direct answers, like using training wheels.

Question 47

Why are group discussions and peer tutoring helpful according to Vygotsky?

Answer 47

Because they support learning through social interaction.

Question 48

What happens to cognitive abilities in adulthood?

Answer 48

Some stay stable, some improve, and some decline.

Question 49

What is crystallized intelligence?

Answer 49

Knowledge accumulated over time such as facts, vocabulary, and general knowledge.

Question 50

What happens to crystallized intelligence as we age?

Answer 50

It generally stays stable or even improves.

Question 51

What is fluid intelligence?

Answer 51

The ability to think quickly, reason flexibly, and solve new problems.

Question 52

What happens to fluid intelligence as we age?

Answer 52

It tends to decline, especially after early adulthood.

Question 53

What is dementia?

Answer 53

A group of symptoms that impair memory, reasoning, and cognitive abilities.

Question 54

What is the most common cause of dementia?

Answer 54

Alzheimer's disease.

Question 55

What’s the difference between dementia and Alzheimer’s?

Answer 55

Dementia is a category of symptoms; Alzheimer’s is a specific disease that causes it.