Santrock tls ppt ch06-1

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A Topical Approach to LIFE-SPAN DEVELOPMENT

John W. Santrock

Chapter Six:

Cognitive Developmental Approaches


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Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

• Processes of development– Concepts for constructing knowledge– Piaget identified how children develop, use them

• Schemes• Assimilation and accommodation• Organization• Equilibrium and disequilibrium• Equilibration


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• Processes of development– Schemes

• Actions or mental representations that organize knowledge

• Behavioral (physical) in infancy• Mental (cognitive) in childhood


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• Processes of development– Assimilation

• Incorporate new information or experience into existing knowledge schemes

– Accommodation• Adjust existing schemes to take in new information and

experiences


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• Processes of development– Organization

• Grouping isolated behaviors into a higher-order cognitive system

• Undergoes continual refinement• Cognitive organization of experiences


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• Processes of development– Equilibration

• Explanation of cognitive shift (qualitative) from one stage of thought to next

– Disequilibrium: cognitive conflict motivation for change

– Equilibrium: resolve conflict through assimilation and accommodation, to reach a new balance of thought


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• Theory – Unifies experiences and biological maturation to

explain cognitive development– Motivation is internal search for equilibrium– Four stages of development…progressively

advanced and qualitatively different


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Stage Age DevelopmentSensorimotor 0-2 yrs Experiences and biology combine;

concepts of object permanence, habits

Preoperational 2-7 yrs Symbolic thinking reflective of use of words and images

Concrete operational

7-11 yrs Logical reasoning about concrete events; concepts of conservation, classification, serial ordering

Formal operational

11-15 yrs Abstract thinking, logical, hypothetical reasoning, idealistic


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• Sensorimotor stage– Age: birth to 2 years– Infants construct understanding of world by

coordinating sensory experiences with motor actions

– Contains six substages


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1 Simple reflexes Sensation and actions coordinated through reflexes (0-1 mo.)

2 First habits. Primary circular reactions

Behavior without stimulus, repetitive actions (1-4 mos.)

3 Secondary circular reactions

Object-oriented, repetition of actions due to consequences (4-8 mos.)

4 Coordination of secondary reactions

Coordinates vision and touch, hand and eye; goal-directed (8-12 mos.)

5 Tertiary circular; novelty, curiosity

Purpose in exploration, start of curiosity, interest in novelty (12-18 mos.)

6 Internalization of schemes

Ability to use primitive symbols, shift to mental manipulation (18-24 mos.)

Substages of Sensorimotor Stage


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• Sensorimotor stage– Age: birth to 2 years– Infants construct understanding of world by

coordinating sensory experiences with motor actions

– Contains six substages


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• Sensorimotor stage– Object permanence

• Understanding that objects still exist when not seen, heard, or touched

• One of infant’s most important accomplishments• Acquired in stages

– Causality and violation of expectations testing


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(b)

(c)

(a)

Infant’s Understanding of Causality

Fig. 6.4


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Evaluating Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage

• New research: theory needs to be modified– Some abilities develop earlier

• Intermodal perception; substantiality and permanence of object

– Transitions not as clear-cut; AB error– No general theory on how development changes

in cognition and nature-nurture issue


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• Preoperational stage– Second stage; ages 2-7 years– Children begin to represent the world with words,

images, and drawings– Not ready to perform operations

• Internalized actions that allow children to do mentally what they only did physically before

• Reversible mental actions


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• Preoperational stage– Two substages

• Symbolic function (ages 2-4)– Gains ability to mentally represent an object that is

not present – Egocentrism: inability to distinguish own view from

another’s view– Animism: lifelike qualities given to inanimate objects


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The Three Mountains Task

View 1

Child seated here

(a)

(b)(d)

(c)

View 2

Child seated here

(a)

(b)

(d)

(c)

Fig. 6.5


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• Preoperational stage– Two substages

• Intuitive Thought (ages 4-7)– Use of primitive reasoning, seeks answers to all

sorts of questions– Why? questions exhaust adults– Certainty of knowledge in absence of rational

thinking


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Symbolic Drawings of Young Children

(a) A 3½-year-old’s symbolic drawing. Halfway into this drawing, the 3½-year-old artist said it was “a pelican kissing a seal.”

(b) This 11-year-old’s drawing is neater and more realistic but also less inventive.

Fig. 6.6


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• Preoperational stage– Centration: focusing attention on one

characteristic to exclusion of all others• Evidenced in lack of conservation

– Conservation: object or substance amount stays same regardless of changing appearance; lacking in preoperational stage


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Piaget’s Conservation Task

Fig. 6.7


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Some Dimensions of Conservation: Number, Matter, and Length

Fig. 6.8


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• Concrete operational stage– Ages: 7-11 years– Children can perform concrete operations– Logical reasoning replaces intuitive reasoning if

applied to specific, concrete examples – Consider several characteristics of object at once– Cross-cultural variations exist


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• Concrete operational stage– Concrete operations: child understands one

person can be father, brother, and grandson– Seriation: involves stimuli along quantitative

dimension (e.g. length)– Transitivity: relationships between objects — if

(a) equals (b) and (b) equals (c), then (a) equals (c)


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Classification: An Important Ability in Concrete Operational Thought

Fig. 6.9


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• Formal operational stage– Ages: 11-15 years– Moves beyond concrete operations; thinks in more

abstract and logical ways– Abstract, Idealistic, and Logical Thinking

• Verbal problem-solving ability increases• Increased ability to think about thought itself• Thought is full of idealism and possibilities


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• Formal operational stage– Children: problems solved by trial-and-error– Adolescents: think more like scientists– Hypothetical-deductive reasoning

• Cognitive ability to develop hypotheses, and systematically find best way to solve problem

– Assimilation dominates initial development– Adolescent Egocentrism


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• Formal operational stage– Imaginary audience

• Belief that others are as interested in them as they are• Involves attention-getting behavior motivated by desire to

be noticed, visible, and “on stage”

– Personal fable — adolescent’s sense of uniqueness and invincibility


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Applying and Evaluating Piaget’s Theory

• Piaget and education– Take a constructivist approach– Facilitate rather than direct learning– Consider child’s knowledge, level of thinking– Use ongoing assessment– Promote the student’s intellectual health

– Turn classroom into exploration, discovery setting


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Applying and Evaluating Piaget’s Theory

• Piaget’s contributions– Vision of children as active, constructive thinkers

• Criticisms of theory– Some estimates of children’s competence is

inaccurate – Development not uniformly stage-like – Effects of training underestimated– Culture and education influence development


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Vygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Development

• Children actively construct their knowledge and understanding– Learn through social interactions– Society provides tools for learning– Minds are shaped by cultural context – Language very important in this process


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• Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)– Range of tasks too difficult for child to master

alone; can be mastered with guidance and assistance from more-skilled person

• Scaffolding– Changing level of support over course of a

teaching session to fit child’s current performance level; dialogue is important tool


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• Language and thought– Child uses language to plan, guide, and monitor

behavior– Language and thought initially develop

independently, then merge– Private speech: language of self-regulation

• Self talk (3 to 7 years of age)• Inner speech: child’s thoughts


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• Teaching strategies– Effectively assess child’s ZPD– Use child’s ZPD in teaching– Use more-skilled peers as teachers– Monitor and encourage private speech– Place instruction in meaningful context– Transform classroom with Vygotskian ideas


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• Tools of the Mind– Emphasizes self-regulation by child– Give special attention to at-risk children

• Poverty• Difficult conditions (e.g. homeless, drugs)• Dramatic play has central role in classroom• Child writings are important


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• Evaluating Vygotsky’s theory– Social constructionist approach– Importance of skills valued by specific culture– Knowledge constructed through social interactions – Criticisms:

• Overemphasize role of language• Facilitators may be too helpful, overcontrolling


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Cognitive Changes in Adulthood

• Piaget’s view– Thinking qualitatively in formal operations same as

adolescents– Adults have more knowledge– Research shows:

• Many don’t reach highest level until adulthood• Many adults don’t use formal operational thinking


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• Realistic and pragmatic thinking– Young adults’ thinking changes from adolescence– Realistic: Idealism decreases in face of real world

constraints– Pragmatic: Switch from acquiring knowledge to

applying it


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• Reflective and relativistic thinking– Move away from absolutist thinking of

adolescence– Reflective thinking: indicates change to adulthood – Increasing complexity of cultures in world

• Indicates changing nature of knowledge• Adulthood – “worldview” is subjective• Greatest influence on thinking — education


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• Is there a fifth, postformal stage?– Postformal thought is

• Reflective, relativistic, and contextual• Provisional• Realistic• Open to emotions and subjective

– More research needed– Another possible stage may be wisdom


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The End

Santrock tls ppt ch06-1

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