Piaget's Sensorimotor Stages

What is Piaget's sensorimotor stage?

First cognitive stage; babies learn through senses and motor actions.

What is the age range of the sensorimotor stage?

Birth to approximately 24 months (2 years).

What is a schema?

A mental framework used to understand the world.

What are the six sensorimotor substages?

Reflexes, primary circular reactions, secondary circular reactions, coordination of secondary circular reactions, tertiary circular reactions, mental representation.

What happens during Substage 1: Reflexes?

Birth–1 month. Babies use automatic reflexes like sucking and grasping.

What are primary circular reactions?

1–4 months. Repeated actions involving the baby's own body.

Example of a primary circular reaction?

A baby repeatedly sucking their thumb.

What are secondary circular reactions?

4–8 months. Repeated actions involving external objects.

Example of a secondary circular reaction?

A baby repeatedly shaking a rattle to hear its sound.

Primary vs. secondary circular reactions?

Primary involves the baby's own body; secondary involves outside objects.

What is coordination of secondary circular reactions?

8–12 months. Combining actions intentionally to achieve a goal.

Example of goal-directed behaviour?

Moving a pillow to reach a hidden toy.

What does means-end analysis involve?

Figuring out which actions are needed to achieve a goal.

What are tertiary circular reactions?

12–18 months. Experimenting with different actions and outcomes.

What is trial and error?

Trying different approaches to discover what works.

Example of a tertiary circular reaction?

Dropping a toy from different heights to observe the results.

What is mental representation?

18–24 months. Mentally representing objects and events.

What is deferred imitation?

Imitating an action after some time has passed since observing it.

What is symbolic play?

Using objects or actions to represent something else, such as feeding a doll.

How do the six substages progress?

Reflexes → body repetition → object repetition → goals → experimentation → mental thought.

A newborn automatically sucks when something touches their mouth. Which substage?

Substage 1: Reflexes (birth–1 month).

A 2-month-old repeatedly kicks their legs for enjoyment. Which substage?

Substage 2: Primary circular reactions (1–4 months).

A 7-month-old shakes a toy repeatedly to hear its sound. Which substage?

Substage 3: Secondary circular reactions (4–8 months).

An infant moves an obstacle to retrieve a hidden toy. Which ability?

Goal-directed behaviour; Substage 4 (8–12 months).

A 10-month-old moves a cushion before reaching for a toy. Which substage?

Substage 4: Coordination of secondary circular reactions.

A 14-month-old tries several ways to open a box. Which substage?

Substage 5: Tertiary circular reactions (12–18 months).

What distinguishes tertiary from secondary circular reactions?

Tertiary involves experimenting with new actions; secondary repeats interesting actions on objects.

A toddler imitates a parent's action the following day. What is this called?

Deferred imitation; an example of mental representation.

A toddler uses a banana as a pretend telephone. What ability is demonstrated?

Symbolic play; an example of mental representation.

Why is mental representation important?

Children can think about absent objects and events without physically experiencing them.