Information Processing and Thinking

Chapter 7 Unit 3

thinking in Infancy

difficult to study - habituation and sequential touching

main aspect: categorization - evolutionary adaptation, requires sensory systems, proceeds global to specific, and contributes to improved memory

theory of mind in childhood

theory of mind - awareness of self and others mental processes

developes between the ages of 2 and 5 and measured with the false-belief task

influences on development of theory of mind

Adolescent improvements

enhanced processing speed, strategy usage, and application in adolescence

scientific reasoning improves through experimentation and reflection - may consider multiple possibilities and still prone to select one rather than multiple causes

adolescent decison making

recall the brain development dilemma

despite this: adolescents demonstrate capabilities equivalent to adults in lab settings and differences in pros/cons

why the questionable decision making? - hot vs cold processes and cognitive affective complexity developing

processing speed

greatest age-related cognitive decline

may be linked to other age-related changes - remember senescene? and descreased myelin and loss of neurons

task matters: is it simple or complex?, is it holding the adults attention?, and is it well-practiced?

Expertise

development of expertise - less calculated more intuitive and flexible, provides cognitive reserve. and helps offset change

selective optimization with compensation - select where to focus, optimize efficiency by focusing resources, and compensate to support and sustain