Cognitive Develepment - Fundamentals of Psychology 2 - Lecture 2

Unit 1: Developmental Psychology Cognitive Development Spring 2010 Lecture 2

Learning outcomes On completion of the module you will be able to: Demonstrate an understanding of empirical research and theories in: Developmental Psychology Abnormal Psychology Cognitive Psychology Demonstrate an ability to present, explain and summarise information.

The module team Module Lecturers Simon Bignell : Room N208; Telephone: 01332 593043; email: [email_address] (Module Leader) Anna Maria DiBetta : Room N208; Telephone: 01332 593080; email: a.di-betta@derby.ac.uk Lovemore Nyatanga: Room N204a; Telephone: 01332 593057; email: l.nyatanga@derby.ac.uk Module Seminar Leaders Above plus the following Post-Graduate Teaching Assistants Atiya Kamal : Room N302; email: a.kamal@derby.ac.uk Lauren Kelly : Room N302; email: l.kelly2@derby.ac.uk

Recommended textbooks Passer, M, Smith, R., Holt, N., Bremmer, A., Sutherland, E. and Vliek, M. (2008). Psychology: The science of mind and behaviour, London: McGraw Hill. Additional / Alternative texts: Unit 1: Developmental Psychology: Siegler, R, DeLoache, J.S. & Eisenberg, N. (2006) How Children Develop (2nd Ed.) NY: Worth.

Components of the module Unit 1: Developmental Psychology: Cognitive development (SB) The development of social relations (SB) The development of the self (SB )

Developmental psychology studies the biological, physical, psychological, and behavioural patterns of growth and changes that occur throughout life. Developmental Psychology

Major Issues and Methods Four Broad Issues: Nature and Nurture: to what extent is our development the product of heredity (nature) and environment (nurture)? How do nature and nurture interact? Continuity versus Discontinuity: is development continuous and gradual, or is it discontinuous, progressing through qualitatively distinct stages? Stability versus Change: do our characteristics remain consistent as we age?

Major Issues and Methods Four Broad Issues (cont.): Critical and Sensitive Periods: are some experiences especially important at particular ages? Critical Period: an age range during which certain experiences must occur for development to proceed normally Sensitive Period: an optimal range for certain experiences, but if those experiences occur at another time, normal development is still possible

Major Issues and Methods Cross-Sectional Design: compares people of different ages at the same point in time Example: we may administer an IQ test to a group of 10-, 20-, and 30-year-olds Allows data from many age groups to be collected relatively quickly Problem: cohort effects - differences in historical periods in which people grew up

Major Issues and Methods Longitudinal Design: repeatedly tests the same cohort as it grows older Example: we may administer an IQ test to a group of 10-year-olds; we retest the same group every five years Extremely time-consuming People may drop out of the study over time Also…Sequential Design: combines the cross-sectional and longitudinal approaches Most comprehensive Costly and time-consuming

Physical and motor development follows several biological principles: Cephalocaudal principle: Reflects the tendency for development to proceed in a head-to-foot direction. (The head of an infant is disproportionately large because physical growth concentrates first on the head.) Proximodistal principle: Development begins along the innermost parts of the body and continues toward the outermost parts. (Thus a fetus’s arms develop before the hands and fingers.) Physical Development

Maturation: the genetically programmed biological process that governs our growth Infants vary in the age at which they acquire particular skills Sequence in which skills appear is typically the same across children Physical Development

Physical Development The adolescent growth spurt can be seen by the rapid increase in height that occurs in males and females at the beginning of puberty. Source: Data from J.M. Tanner, R.H. Whitehouse, and M. Takaishi, “Standards from Birth to Maturity for Height, Weight, Height Velocity and Weight Velocity” in Archives of Diseases in Childhood , 41, 555-571, 1966. Height gain in centimeters per year Age in years 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 0 2 4 6 8 10 12 14 16 18 20 22 24

Cognitive Development Jean Piaget Stage theory of cognitive development Lev Vygotsky Culture significantly affects our cognitive development Theory of Mind Ability to understand other people’s mental states Information-Processing Approaches Views cognitive development as a continuous, gradual process The same set of information-processing abilities become more efficient over time

Cognitive Development: Piaget’s Stage Model Piaget’s Stage Model proposed that children’s thinking changes qualitatively with age Results from an interaction of the brain’s biological maturation and personal experiences Schemas: organised patterns of thoughts and action Development occurs as we acquire new schemas and as our existing schemas become more complex Disequilibrium: an imbalance between existing schemas and new experiences Assimilation: the process by which new experiences are incorporated into existing schemas Accommodation: the process by which new experiences cause existing schemas to change VIDEO

Cognitive Development: Piaget’s Stages Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget (1926- 1977) spent over 50 years exploring how a child’s thought processes develops. Stage Age (Years) Major Characteristics Sensorimotor Preoperational Concrete operational Formal operational Birth to 2 2 to 7 7 to 12 12 on Infant understands world through sensory and motor experiences Achieves object permanence Exhibits emergence of symbolic thought Child uses symbolic thinking in the form of words and images to represent objects and experiences Symbolic thinking enables child to engage in pretend play Thinking displays egocentrism, irreversibility, and centration Child can think logically about concrete events Grasps concepts of conservation and serial ordering Adolescent can think more logically, abstractly, and flexibly Can form hypotheses and systematically test them

Cognitive Development: Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage (0 to 2 years) Infants understand their world primarily through sensory experiences and physical (motor) interactions with objects. Motor Skills are reflexive and voluntary, enables infants to explore the new world around them. Neonates : Only capable of surprise, pleasure, and distress. Infancy : Introduces further emotions of anger, shyness, and fear. At 9 months : An infant will become anxious when separated from his or her caregiver. By 2 years : Infants can display emotions of guilt or of being ashamed. Object Permanence: the understanding that an object continues to exist even when it cannot be seen. VIDEO

Cognitive Development: Piaget’s Preoperational Stage (2 to 7 years) The world is represented symbolically through words and mental images; no understanding of basic mental operations or rules Rapid language development Understanding of the past and future No understanding of Principle of Conservation: basic properties of objects stay the same even though their outward appearance may change

Cognitive Development: Piaget’s Concrete Operational (7 to 12 years) Children can perform basic mental operations concerning problems that involve tangible (“concrete”) objects and situations Understand the concept of reversibility Display less egocentrism Easily solve conservation problems Trouble with hypothetical and abstract reasoning This stage is characterised by 7 types of conservation: number, length, liquid, mass, weight, area, and volume.

Cognitive Development: Piaget’s Formal Operational Stage (12 + years) Individuals are able to think logically and systematically about both concrete and abstract problems, form hypotheses, and test them in a thoughtful way Early in this period there is a return to egocentric thought Most of previous characteristics discussed have now developed. The child shows logical thinking and is able to work through abstract problems and use logic without the presence of concrete manipulation. Many adults never attain this stage

Cognitive Development: Piaget’s Theory Assessing Piaget’s Theory: General cognitive abilities associated with Piaget’s four stages occur in the same order across cultures Children acquire many skills and concepts earlier than Piaget believed Cognitive development within each stage seems to proceed inconsistently Culture influences cognitive development Cognitive development is more complex and variable than Piaget proposed Piaget has been criticised for using difficult questions Blank & Rose (1974) The way in which the question is asked is important, when they replicated Piaget experiment the percentage of 6-year olds that could conserve increased.

Because Piaget concentrated on the individual child, he failed to consider the effect that the social setting may have on cognitive development. According to Russian developmental psychologist Lev Vygotsky, the culture in which we are raised significantly affects our cognitive development. The way that adults use language and gestures and the child's experience through social interactions are very influential on cognitive development. Cognitive development occurs as a consequence of social interactions in which children work with others to jointly solve problems. Cognitive Development: Vygotsky

Cognitive Development: Vygotsky Zone of Proximal Development (Vygotsky): the difference between what a child can do independently and what the child can do with assistance from adults or more advanced peers Helps us recognise what children will soon be able to do on their own Emphasises that we can help move a child’s cognitive development forward, within limits Children’s cognitive abilities increase when they encounter information that falls within their ZPD.

Cognitive Development: Vygotsky “… what is the zone of proximal development today will be the actual development level tomorrow – that is, what a child can do with assistance toady she will be able to do by herself tomorrow”. “ The zone of proximal development defines those functions that have not yet matured, but are in the process (of doing so)…”

Cognitive Development: Theory of Mind Theory of Mind: a person’s beliefs about the “mind” and the ability to understand other people’s mental states The ability to make inferences about others’ representational states and to predict behaviour accordingly’ (Lewis & Mitchell, 1994) Studies of lying and deception provide evidence of theory of mind Rudimentary understanding develops around age 3 to 4 It is claimed that children below about 4 years do not have theory of mind How do we know? False belief tests: Unexpected transfer test (Wimmer & Perner, 1983) Deceptive box test (Perner, Leekam & Wimmer, 1987; Gopnik & Astington, 1988) Appearance-reality tests: Rock-sponge test (Flavell, Flavell & Green, 1983)

Information processing: The way in which people take in, use, and store information. To many developmental psychologists, changes in information processing account for cognitive development. (Sielgler, 1998; Lacerda, von Hofsten & Heimann, 2001; Cashon & Cohen, 2004.) According to this approach, quantitative changes occur in children’s ability to organise and manipulate information. Children may become increasingly adept at information processing, similar to a computer program becoming more sophisticated as a programmer modifies it on the basis of experience. Cognitive Development: Information-Processing Approaches

Views cognitive development as a continuous, gradual process The same set of information-processing abilities become more efficient over time As children age: Information-search strategies improve Information-processing speed quickens Attention span and ability to inhibit impulsive responses to distracting stimuli also improves Cognitive Development: Information-Processing Approaches

Summary Cognitive Development Major Issues and Methods Physical Development Piaget Vygotsky Theory of Mind Information-Processing Approaches

Cognitive Develepment - Fundamentals of Psychology 2 - Lecture 2

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