Cognition Flashcards
(32 cards)
Piaget Stages - names and ages
Emphasis on interaction nature/nurture
Sensorimotor (0-2y)
Preoperational (2-7y)
Concrete operational (7-11y)
Formal operations (11+y)
Sensorimotor stage
Intelligence expressed through sensory/motor abilities.
Object permanence - from 8mo they search for hidden objects which shows ‘mental representation’.
A not B error.
Preoperational thought stage
Represent experiences through language, mental imagery & symbolic thought.
Symbolic representation - using card as phone.
Egocentrism - perceive world from own point of view.
Centration - two beakers, tall one has more water.
Concrete operational thought stage
Reason logically about concrete objects and realise thoughts aren’t shared by others.
Mastered logical reasoning about concrete problems (pass two beakers test).
Systematical thinking and hypothetical reasoning still developing.
Pendulum with different weights and asked what factors affect the way it swings - children at this stage vary more than one thing at once and get confused.
Formal operations stage
Logically use symbols to express abstract thoughts and understand abstract concepts such as justice.
Deductive reasoning (algebra).
Systematic problem solving (pass pendulum test).
Piaget mental schemas
Assimilation - if new info fits existing then it assimilates together.
Accommodation - if new info doesn’t fit existing then we must accomodate for it in existing schema.
Equilibration - balancing accommodation and assimilation to create stable understanding.
A not B error - Piaget
Two hiding places - object is hidden in one then the other.
<12mo reach for original hiding place even though they see object hidden in the other place.
Basic concept of object permanence but lack full concept and determine it based on previous actions.
Evaluation of Piaget
Stages proceed in correct order but not at correct ages as it varies between children.
Not everyon acquires formal operations.
Under-estimation of children’s abiltiies - perspective taking.
Doesn’t account for contribution of social environment.
Doesn’t say how the cognitive changes come about.
Information processing theories key features
Children’s cognitive growth is continuous but takes different times on different tasks.
Children as limited capacity system.
Child as problem solver.
With age can reduce processing limitations by:
- Increase in processing speed
- Acquisition of new strategies
- Increase amount of information that can be processed simultaneously.
Development of memory
Basic processes:
- Associating events with other events
- Recognising objects
- Recalling facts
Strategies for memory:
- Rehearsal
- Selective attention (aids content specific knowledge)
Content knowledge:
- Expanding knowledge makes it easier to integrate new information with existing theory
Overlapping Waves Theory (Siegler, 1996)
Information processing approach,
Can use number of strategies at any age once they are developed.
In terms of Piaget beaker - failure would be due to inexperience (lack of strategy) or success due to attention (flexibility).
Vygotsky - Sociocultural Theory
Stresses social interaction has a vital role.
Intersubjectivity Joint Attention Social Scaffolding Guided Participation Zone of Proximal Development
Intersubjectivity
Mutual understanding people share during communication.
Joint attention
Shared focus of two individuals on an object.
Hotspot for learning (Tomasello).
Linked to language development and play facilitation.
Social scaffolding
Helping a child to reach their full potential by aiding them and once they master the task the scaffolding can be removed.
Guided participation
Children actively acquire new skills through participation in meaningful activities with an adult.
Zone of Proximal Development
All knowledge and skills that a person cannot yet understand or perform on their own but are capable of doing so with guidance.
Unsuccessful grasping
Shift from external to internal plane.
Child reaches for something and can’t get it.
Parent passes it to them (external).
Child learns that reaching can be used as a gesture.
Gesture becomes internalised as a way of communication.
Piaget and Vygotsky education differences
Piaget - provide materials and child discovers alone.
Vygotsky - teacher and child work together to construct new scehemas (scaffolding, ZPD).
Bigelow, MacLean & Proctor (2004) - Joint attention
Do infants show more advanced play with joint attention?
12mo infants scored on types of play (functional, relational, stereotypical or no play)
Condition 1 - joint attention
Condition 2 - no joint attention but with mother
Condition 3 - alone
Infants play facilitated by joint attention.
Mother regulates play to infant’s and scaffold in ZPD.
When mothers are intrusive and try to focus child it is not beneficial.
Conclusions - learning is child driven.
Dynamic Systems Theory
Children’s specific actions shape development (playing, crawling, reaching etc).
Change is the only constant - how it occurs varies from child to child dependant on their experiences.
Process of variation and selection.
Process of variation and selection
Variation - different behaviours that enable child to achieve same goal.
Selection - increasingly frequent choice of behaviours that are effective.
A not B - Dynamic Systems
Factors other than conceptual understanding effect performance:
Habit - more often baby found toy in A the more often they look there again.
Memory - longer the interval between hiding in B and allowing reach the more likely they look in A again.
Attention - manipulating attention by tapping one location meant they looked in that location.
Adding weights to arms improved performance as their muscle memory wasn’t as strong.
Dynamic Systems comparison to other theories
Child has innate motivation to explore
Formative influence of other people
Precise analysis of problems solving ability
