Developmental Psychological- Chapter 7 and 8

Middle Childhood

• Age 6 to 11- typically the healthiest period of a person’s life

• Average child gains about 2 inches and 5 pounds per year

Piaget’s cognitive theory stage

• Concrete operational thought: children gain the capacity for concrete though- ability to reason logically about direct experiences and perceptions/ability to follow rules

• Classification: the ability to put things into groups based on a characteristic

• Seriation: things can be arranged in a series/ crucial for understanding the numbers

Vygotsky’s Cognition Theory during middle childhood

• Children still rely on mentors and the ZPD to develop new skills

• New mentors emerge- teachers and coaches

• Mentors assist with selective attention

Information Processing Theory (IPT)

• Another model of how cognition develops

• According to the IPT our brain is wired to create a knowledge base by:

1. Selective relevant information

2. Analyzing information for meaning

3. Express conclusions about that information

Prefrontal cortex

• Allows for the further development of reaction time and paying attention

• Automatization: cognitive process where practicing an action/skill makes it so well learned that it requires minimal conscious thought

Vocabulary development

• By age 6: children know most of the basic vocabulary & grammar of their first language

• Pragmatics: changing one’s speech patterns based on context

→ children start to engage in code-switching (formal/informal) behaviors

What does neurodiversity and aptitude refer to?

• Neurodiversity refers to the idea that each person has cognitive strengths and weaknesses (aptitudes)

Multiple intelligences

Linguistic, mathematical, interpersonal, musical, intrapersonal, visual/spatial, naturalistic, bodily-kinesthetic, and existential/spiritual

Self-concept and social comparison

• During this time, kids are becoming more independent

• Children develop a much more realistic self-concept- driven by social comparison

• Social comparison: the tendency to measure oneself to your peers

Theories of Psychosocial Development

• Erikson: Industry vs. inferiority stage- kids want to explore their independence

• Freud: Latency stage- urges related to self-indulgence gratification are suppressed→ kids seek approval from others and self through activities like schoolwork and sport

Family structure vs. family function

• Family function: the way family works to meet the needs of its members

• Family structure: refers to the legal and genetic relationships among relatives in the same home

Kolhberg’s Moral development

1. Preconventional moral reasoning (0-6)

2. Conventional moral reasoning (6-11)

3. Postconventional moral reasoning (11+)