Cognitive Transitions

Adolescents Cognition

they think counterfactually and hypothetically

• become better at abstract thinking

Meta-Cognition

thinking about your own thinking

Egocentrism

increased focus on oneself that occurs as adolescents become more self-conscious

Jean Piaget

• age of 11: first “scientific publication” descriving an albino sparrow

• age of 22: PhD in Biology on mollusks

• studies in philosophy and psychology

• standardization of children’s intelligence test for Theodore Simon

• age of 29: birth of first child; systemic observation of his 3 children

• from 1940 Professor at University of Geneva

• in 1950s increasing recognition for his research on cogntive development

• also adressed issues of education, scientific counselor of international organizations dealing with children’s development

Piaget’s Theory of Cogntitve Development

deals with cogntive development from infancy through adolescence

Piaget’s Theory Is

complex and not always easy to understand

Piaget’s Theroy - Basic Assumption

• cognition develops from action

• logical reasoning emerges from a “logic of action”

• human intelligence is the most balanced form of biolgoical adaption of an organism to the environment

Schema

organized pattern of thought or behaviour to grasp an object or event

Schemas Are

behavioural or symbolic (e.g. reaching of objects, mentally concepts)

Assimilation

fitting new information into an existing schema

Accommodation

modifying existing scheme to new experience

Equilibration

reaching balance between thought processes and environment

• process and aim of development

4 Stages of Cognitive Development

1. sensorimotor stage (0-2 years)

2. pre-operational stage (3-6 years)

3. concrete operational stage (7-11 years)

4. formal-operational stage (12 +)

Sensorimotor Stage

children gain knowledge through their senses and motor movements

• intelligence is in action, not in manipulating cognitive representations and symbols

Sensorimotor Stage - Most Important Achievement

object performance

Pre-Operational Stage

ability to cognitively represent objects and events (using language and symbols)

• children begin to think symbolically

Pre-Operational Stage - Negatively Defined

thining is not yet optimal → lacking concrete logic

Egocentric Thinking

struggling to see other’s perspectives

Concrete Operational Stage

children begin to understand logical reasoning

• thoughts limited to real objects, events and situations

Concrete Operational Stage - Major Milestones

conservation, mental seriation, hierarchical classification

Formal Operational Stage

adolescents gain the ability to use hypothetical deductive reasoning and abstract thought

• adolescents think hypothetically, abstractly and think about alternatives

Formal Operational Stage - Thought Process

thought process is not limited to real objects or events

• allows for hypotheical reasoning, regardless of personal experience

What Are Teenagers Able to do in the Formal Operational Stage

able to consider all possible causes of an event

• makes it possible to systemically test hypothesis

Formal Operations Example: Syllogism

ability to evaluate the pure logical form of syllogism regardless of its real-world content

Basic Rules of Logical Conclusions - Syllogism

1. all humans beings are mortal (proposition 1)

2. soccrates is a human being (proposition 2)

3. therefore, Socrates is mortal (conclusion: mortal)

Examples for Abstract Reasoning

• When you describe something with a metaphor 

• When you talk about something figuratively 

• When you come up with a creative solutions to a problem 

• When you analyze a situation 

• When you notice relationships or patterns 

• When you form a theory about why something happens 

• When you think about a problem from another point of view

Criticism of Piaget’s Stage Theroy

1. Piaget overemphasized the stage-like character of cogntive development

2. formal-operational thinking is domain specfifc - dependent on education

3. cultural influences on cognitive development are largely neglected

Piaget’s Legacy

• shaped the feild of developmetnal psychology for decades and still exerts strong influence

• his description of broad sequences provides reasonably accurate overview of intellectual development

• his theroy has important practical implications for educators

Who is the Best-Known Neo-Piagetian

Robbie Case

Case’s Neo-Piagetian Theory

refined concepts of assimilation and accommodation

• existing knowledge is consolidated

• repeated practice is important for automatization

Execuative Functioning

mental skills that help you carry out day-to-day tasks

• inhibition control, working memory, cognitive flexability

Inhibition Control

ability to think before acting

Working Memory

ability to hold and juggle a small amount of information while performing another task

Cogntive Flexability

ability to adjust your thinking when situations change, so you can find new ways to solve problems or respond

Execuative Control Structures Enable the Person to

1. represent the problem situation

2. specify the objectives or problem solving

3. conceive of the strategy needed to attain the objectives

Information Processing Theory - Core Idea

individuals use a variety of cogntive operations to process information through a limited capacity system

• rules, analyze, retrive information

Cognitive Development is Due to Change in System

capcity, strucutre and efficiency

Sensory Store

• holds raw sensory input as kind of afterimage

• large quantity but only for limited period of time (ms)

Short-Term (“Working”) Memory

central processing unit

• store information temporarily so you can use it

• analyze information

• limited capacity (5-7 units)

Long-Term Store

permanent storehouse of information of unlimited capacity

• procedural knowledge (knowing how)

• declarative knowledge (knowing that)

Encoding

taking in information from the environment and assigning meaning to it

Encoding Attends To

stimuli before being stored in short-term memory

Storage

information is held in short-term memory while it is procsessed or transfered into long-term memory for more permanent storage

Retrieval

accesses stored information and bring it back into working memory when needed

Transformation

transforming information into a more useful form

Capacity of Working Memory Is Assesed By

memory span → ability to recall unrealted item in exact order

Explanations For Increase in Memory Span

• increase in capacity → number of items people can keep in mind at one time

• changes in processing speed and phonolgical information → visual recognition dominant processing mode of early childhood

• more efficient use of limited capacity → spontaneous use of memory strategies, development of meta-memory

Meta-Memory - Declarative

knowledge about own memory, about tasks and about memory strategies

Meta-Memory - Procedural

ability to regulate and monitor memory-related activities

• realisitc appraisal of mental effort necessary to memorize new info

• slef-regulated learning of new information

Procedural Meta-Memory

realistic appraisal of own memeory performance and self-monitoring usually not before the age of 10

Time Spent on Memorizing Different Pairs of Words

• easy: related (e.g. dog - cat)

• difficult: unrelated (e.g. sun - car)

Is Cognitive Development Complete by Age 15?

by age 15, adolescents are as proficient as adults in basic cogntive abilities

When Does Development of Advanced Abilities Happen

may not be complete until the mid 20s

Socio-Cultural View on Cogntive Development Founder

Lev Vygotsky

Lev Vygotsky

• worked first as a school teacher, then got invited to joint University

• was interested in mentally and physically challegned children, and beleived in their social integration

• in early 1930s Vygotsky became victim of Stalin’s rule

• died in 1934

Vygotsky’s Work

was banned from publication from 1936 until 1956 in Russia

Vygotsky’s Major Work

“thought and language” originally published 1934

Vygotsky’s Work Became Influential In

American developmental psychology in 1970s and 1980s as a critical alternative to the dominant Piagetian account of development

Sociocultural View - Guiding Principles

cogntive development results from child’s everyday activities

Everyday Activity is Largely Shaped by Culture

• Social settings (e.g. family, school)

• Physical settings (e.g. buildings, playgrounds, neighborhoods) 

• Objects and artifacts (e.g. toys, tools, games, computers)

• Symbolic systems (e.g. spoken and written language, beliefs)

• Social practices and routines (e.g. household chores, holidays)

Zone of Proximal Development

gap between what a child can do independently and what they can acheive with help of more skilled adults

Scaffolding

an adults gives a child high support to master a new skill, then gradually removes that support as the learner becomes independent

Scaffolding - Structure of Problem Solving Tasks

tasks should be in the child’s zone of proximal development

What Can Children Do With Scaffolding

can master skills while developing the necessary skills

• regularly happens in the context of “guided participation”

Parents Role in Scaffolding

children and adults collaborate in everyday problem-sovling activities

• parents guide children’s participation in these activities, helping to adapt their knowledge and develop new emerging skills

Internalization/Appropriation

child relies less on external support system but is increasingly able to solve similar tasks independently

Strategies to Help Solve a Problem

• keep the child focused

• mark critical features of the task

• demonstration

• frustration control

Sociocultural View - Example: Reading Development

• rarely happens spontaneously

• scaffolding is the norm → picture books, family routines

• reading skills are fully internalized when child is able to read a variety of texts without external support

Sociocultural Views Reminds Developmental Psychologists That

cognitive tasks children engage in are largely defined by cultural context that infleunce what skills children develop