PSYC 111 Lecture Notes - Jean Piaget, Cognitive Development, Main Source
13 Jun 2018
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Introduction to Psychology II - Notes 6
September 18, 2017
Dr. Kim
Page 375
10.3: The Developing Mind: Cognitive Development
● Cognitive development: study of how children acquire the ability to learn, think,
reason, communicate, and remember
Theories of Cognitive Development
● Cognitive developmental theories differ in three core ways:
○ Some propose stagelike changes in understanding (sudden spurts in
knowledge followed by periods of stability); others, more continuous
(gradual, incremental) changes in understanding
○ Some adopt a domain-general account of development; others, a domain-
specific account.
■ Domain-general accounts propose that changes in children’s
cognitive skills affect most or all areas of cognitive function in
tandem
■ Domain-specific accounts propose that children’s cognitive skills
develop independently and at different rates across different
domains, such as reasoning, language, and counting
○ They differ in their views of the main source of learning.
■ Emphasize physical experience (moving around in the world)
■ Emphasize social interaction (how parents and peers engage with
them)
■ Emphasize biological maturation (innate programming of certain
mental capabilities)
● Piaget’s theory: how children construct their worlds
○ Jean Piaget: first person to present a comprehensive account of cognitive
development
○ Children’s understanding of the world differs fundamentally from adults’
but is perfectly rational given their limited experience with the world
○ Children seek information and observe the consequences of their actions
○ Children’s development is marked by radical reorganization of thinking at
specific transition points followed by periods during which their
understanding of the world stabilizes
○ The end point of cognitive development is the achievement of the ability to
reason logically about hypothetical problems
Page 376
○ Piaget’s stages of development
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Document Summary
Cognitive development: study of how children acquire the ability to learn, think, reason, communicate, and remember. Cognitive developmental theories differ in three core ways: Some propose stagelike changes in understanding (sudden spurts in knowledge followed by periods of stability); others, more continuous (gradual, incremental) changes in understanding. Some adopt a domain-general account of development; others, a domain- specific account. Domain-general accounts propose that changes in children"s cognitive skills affect most or all areas of cognitive function in tandem. Domain-specific accounts propose that children"s cognitive skills develop independently and at different rates across different domains, such as reasoning, language, and counting. They differ in their views of the main source of learning. Emphasize physical experience (moving around in the world) Emphasize social interaction (how parents and peers engage with them) Emphasize biological maturation (innate programming of certain mental capabilities) Piaget"s theory: how children construct their worlds. Jean piaget: first person to present a comprehensive account of cognitive development.
