Developmental and Social Psychology: Information Processing

Defines cognitive development as the mental operations by which sensory experiences are converted into knowledge.
Utilizes a computer analogy to describe how the mind receives, stores, manipulates, and responds to information.
Viewed as a continuous and gradual process of growth in processing speed, memory capacity, and strategic thinking, contrasting with stage-based theories like Piaget’s.
Primary components include Attention, Memory, Thinking, and Executive Functioning.

Attention Types: Includes selective, divided, and sustained attention (vigilance).
Infancy: Characterized by orientation to new stimuli and a preference for faces and voices.
Early Childhood: Improvement in sustained attention occurs, though children remain easily distracted.
Middle Childhood: Significant advancements in selective and sustained attention.
Adolescence: Increased capacity for divided attention and cognitive flexibility.
Impact: Foundational for memory encoding, problem-solving, and academic success in reading and math.

Infancy: Memory improves over the first $2$ years as the hippocampus matures. Carolyn Rovee-Collier demonstrated that $2$ -month-olds remember a mobile-kicking task for $3$ days, $3$ -month-olds for $1$ week, and $6$ -month-olds for $21$ days.
Infantile Amnesia: The inability to remember the first $3$ years of life, potentially linked to an immature prefrontal lobe.
Short-Term/Working Memory: Capacity increases from $2-3$ items at ages $4-5$ to $5-7$ items (adult level) by age $12$ . Information is typically retained for $15$ to $30$ seconds without rehearsal.
Adulthood: Working memory and processing speed peak at $45$ and begin declining at age $57$ .
Memory Strategies: * Rehearsal: Repetition for short-term retention. * Organizing: Grouping related information. * Imagery: Creating mental images for verbal data. * Elaboration: Deep processing through examples and self-referencing.

Infancy: Categorization begins early; $3$ -month-olds can distinguish between categories like cat vs. dog.
Childhood: Development of critical thinking (evaluating truths) and scientific thinking (identifying causal relationships).
Adolescence: Improvement in decision-making and automaticity. Critical thinking maturity depends on skills developed in childhood.
Adulthood: Thinking relies on accumulated experience and expertise. Problem-solving becomes more automatic, though some slowing occurs from middle adulthood unless tasks involve practiced knowledge.

Definition: Known as the "CEO of the brain," responsible for goal-directed behavior, self-regulation, and juggling multiple tasks.
Core Components: * Inhibitory Control: Suppressing impulses and distractions (e.g., delay of gratification). * Working Memory: Holding and manipulating information (e.g., mental math). * Cognitive Flexibility: Switching perspectives or adapting to changing rules.
Developmental Trajectory: Basic control emerges between $0-2$ years; rapid development occurs between $3-5$ years; peak capacity is reached in the mid- $20s$ , followed by a gradual decline.

Definition: The ability to understand that others have distinct thoughts, beliefs, desires, and emotions.
Milestones: * $~1$ year: Joint attention and gaze-following. * $~2-3$ years: Understanding that desires influence actions. * $~4-5$ years: Understanding "false beliefs," a crucial milestone. * $8-10+$ years: Grasping sarcasm, double meanings, and social faux pas.
Influence: Facilitated by language development, social interaction, and executive functions. Children with Autism Spectrum Disorder ( $ASD$ ) often show delays in ToM development.