Exam 1 Theory and Measurement & Cognitive Development Review

Vocabulary flashcards generated from lecture notes covering research methodology, developmental designs, cognitive development key concepts, and Piagetian developmental stages.

C.R.A.P. Test

An acronym for evaluating sources: Currency (timeliness of information), Reliability (accuracy and truthfulness of content), Authority (source of information), and Purpose (reason the information exists).

Loftus & Palmer (1974)

A study demonstrating that changing a single word in a question—specifically the verb used to describe a collision—significantly alters speed estimates and can create false memories.

Descriptive Method

A research method that describes phenomena through case studies, naturalistic observation, and similar techniques.

Correlational Method

A research method that assesses the relationship between variables without experimental control.

Experimental Method

A research method that manipulates an independent variable to see how it affects a dependent variable.

Longitudinal Design

A developmental design that tests the same group over a period of time

• Pros: 

  • helps explain change in THAT group

  • Controls for variation between age groups

• Cons: 

  • Hard to do

  • Participant drop-out

  • Improvement through practice 

Cross-sectional Design

A developmental design where the performance of individuals at different ages is compared

• Pros:

  • Easier to do

  • Faster 

• Cons: 

  • Possible cohort effects

  • Unable to show individual change

Microgenetic Method

A type of longitudinal method where a child is repeatedly tested in a short period of time to identify change as it occurs and understand mechanisms of change.

Naturalistic Observation

A research method where scientists watch and record the behavior of humans or animals in their real-world environment without changing or controlling any variables.

Validity

Whether a test or assessment accurately measures the actual mental processes, reasoning abilities, or cognitive constructs it is designed to evaluate.

Reliability

The consistency, stability, and precision of cognitive measurements across different ages, testing sessions, and developmental stages.

Primary Source

Original, firsthand accounts and research publications written by the scientists who conducted the foundational studies.

Secondary Source

Any publication that analyzes, reviews, summarizes, or synthesizes original research regarding how human thought processes develop.

In your own words, what are some reasons that COVID-19 has presented challenges to children regarding education?

• Less motivation

• Harder to focus

• Stress

• Loneliness 

What do we know so far about how the pandemic has affected achievement and growth in math and reading?

The COVID-19 pandemic caused large, lasting drops in student test scores for math and reading, with math experiencing much worse losses than reading across nearly all grade levels

Matthew Effect

A pattern in reading where good readers get better and poor readers fall further behind over time.

Innate

A natural characteristic or ability that you are born with rather than something you learn.

Constructivists

Theorists who believe infants are born with some simple reflexes and perceptions for learning and survival that they construct upon.

Competent-infant / Nativist Perspective

A perspective associated with Spelke suggesting infants are born with a wide range of perceptual/conceptual understandings ('core knowledge') and learning mechanisms.

Stage-like (Discontinuous) Theories

Theories that view cognitive development as a series of distinct, qualitatively different steps.

Continuous Theories

Theories that view cognitive development as a slow, cumulative, and gradual process of adding skills.

Quantitative Change

Development occurring in small, incremental steps where skills build smoothly on top of previous ones.

Concurrence Assumption

The idea that children transition from one stage of thinking to another across many different concepts and domains simultaneously.

Coherent Organization

The idea that a child’s thinking becomes more organized, logical, and connected as they develop.

Abruptness Assumption

The idea that developmental change happens suddenly, rather than gradually over time.

Assimilation

Occurs when a person takes new information or experiences and fits them into an existing mental framework (schema) without significantly changing that framework.

• Ex: A child already has a schema that “dogs are furry animals with four legs.” When they see a new breed of dog they have never seen before, they recognize it as a dog and add it to their existing dog schema

Accommodation

Occurs when a person changes an existing mental schema—or creates a new one—because new information does not fit what they already know.

Automatization

Occurs when a skill that originally requires conscious attention and effort becomes automatic through practice and experience.

Statistical Learning

The ability to notice patterns and regularities in the environment and use them to learn, often without consciously trying.

Why study individual differences?

• Helps explain why children differ in memory, attention, intelligence, language, problem-solving, and learning.

What are some concerns with interpreting individual differences?

• Shows how factors such as genetics, environment, education, experiences, and culture may influence development.

• Helps identify children who may need additional educational support or different teaching approaches.

Why do we measure IQ? What do we know about predicting IQ from infancy?

• IQ is measured to understand differences in children's cognitive abilities and to help predict aspects of later academic and intellectual performance.

• Traditional infant developmental tests are generally poor predictors of later IQ, especially for typically developing infants.

Plasticity

The ability of the brain and cognitive abilities to change and adapt in response to experience, learning, or the environment.

What are the different components of social and cultural context?

includes family, peers, school, culture, socioeconomic status, community, and historical influences. These factors interact to shape a child's experiences and cognitive development.

Sensorimotor Period Substage 1

Modification of reflexes (0 – 1 mo).

Sensorimotor Period Substage 2

Primary Circular Reactions (1 – 4 mo).

Sensorimotor Period Substage 3

Secondary Circular Reactions (4 – 8 mo).

Sensorimotor Period Substage 4

Coordination of Secondary Circular Reactions (8 – 12 mo).

Sensorimotor Period Substage 5

Tertiary Circular Reactions (12 – 18 mo).

Sensorimotor Period Substage 6

Beginnings of Representational Thought (18 – 24 mo).

Sensorimotor Period

Piagetian stage from 0 to 2 years focused on learning through the senses.

Preoperational Period

Piagetian stage from 2 to 7 years characterized by egocentrism, pretend play, deferred imitation, and symbolic/language development, while struggling with perspective-taking.

Concrete Operational Period

Piagetian stage from 7 to 11 years where children think logically about the physical world and pass conservation tasks, but struggle with abstract concepts and systematic problem-solving.

Formal Operational Period

Piagetian stage from 12 and up where individuals understand abstract concepts, logic, and hypothetical thinking.

Habituation Paradigm

A paradigm where an infant is repeatedly shown the same stimulus until attention decreases, followed by a new stimulus; an increase in attention (dishabituation) indicates the infant noticed a difference.

Preferential Looking Paradigm

A paradigm where two different stimuli are shown simultaneously to measure if an infant looks at one longer, suggesting discrimination or preference.

How did Piaget underestimate infants’ understanding of object permanence?  Provide an example from the research presented in class.

PIAGET SAID that infants don’t understand object permanence until (8-12months) or later BUT

Baillargeon (1987): Research demonstrating that 4-month-old infants look longer at an 'impossible' event, showing early object permanence and challenging Piaget's timeline.

Meltzoff (1988) : Research showing that 9-month-old infants can imitate actions modeled by someone a day later, demonstrating deferred imitation much earlier than Piaget's proposed 18–24 month range. Understanding object permanence is gradual, not sudden

Egocentrism

Seeing one's own view as the most important perspective with a limited ability to take the perspective of others; tested by Piaget using the 3-mountain task.

Conservation

Centration: Focusing on one aspect of a problem while neglecting others, tested using conservation tasks or the physics 'toy train task'.

Class Inclusion

Failing to recognize that objects can belong to one or more classes or categories simultaneously (e.g., struggling with 'Are there more dogs or more animals?').

What evidence suggests that children were not as egocentric as Piaget proposed?

Theory of Mind : A basic understanding of other people's mental states—including beliefs, desires, and feelings—present by age 4 and studied using false belief and false contents tasks.

How can performance on conservation tasks be improved?

• Reduce memory/processing load

•  Reducing pragmatic constraints (e.g., not asking twice)

• Reconceptualizing the problem (e.g., naughty teddybear; McGarrigle & Donaldson, 1974)

McGarrigle & Donaldson (1974)

A study using a 'naughty teddybear' that demonstrated conservation task performance can be improved by reconceptualizing the problem and reducing pragmatic constraints.

Dasen (1977) & Cole (1990)

Studies showing that 'schooled' children attain conservation and formal operational thinking at an earlier age compared to 'unschooled' children, demonstrating cultural and experience differences.

According to Piaget, how do children struggle with abstract thinking during the concrete operational stage?

• Begin to think logically about the physical world (e.g., pass conservation tasks)

• But don’t think abstractly (e.g., about “what could be”)

  • Difficulty with hypothetical reasoning problems (e.g., “If people could know the future, would they be happier than they are now?”)

• Difficulty using systematic approaches to solving some problems

  • E.g., chemistry problem--what turns the solution orange?

What is the evidence that Piaget’s description of the formal operation stage may not tell the whole story?

• PIAGET SAID his was the final stage of cognitive development BUT some don’t reach this stage at all AND there are cultural differences AND individual differences 

• E.g., Compared to “unschooled” children, “schooled” children attain conservation (e.g., Dasen, 1977) and formal operational thinking (e.g., Cole, 1990) at an earlier age. Experience?

What were Piaget’s major contributions to cognitive development?

• Contributions:

  • Founding the field of cognitive development

  • Conceptualizing development as active and constructive

  • Exploring new methods

  • Getting a good “gist” of cog dev processes, especially with older children