Chapter 6: Cognition in Infants and Toddlers6.1 Piaget’s Theory6.2 Information Processing6.3 Language

6.1 Piaget’s TheoryBasic Principles of Piaget’s TheoryPiaget’s Sensorimotor StageEvaluating Piaget’s Account of Sensorimotor ThoughtThe Child as Theorist

Basic Principles of Piaget’s Theory

Schemes: organize experienceAssimilation: incorporate new experiences into existing schemesAccommodation: change schemes based on experienceEquilibration: reorganize schemes to return to state of equilibrium

6.1 Piaget’s Theory

Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage

From birth to 2 yearsBegins with reflex action and ends with use of symbolsPrimary, Secondary, and Tertiary Circular Reactions are repetitive acts that help the infant learn about the world

6.1 Piaget’s Theory

Evaluating Piaget’s Account of Sensorimotor ThoughtOther researchers have found alternative explanations for performance on Piagetian tasksObject permanence may occur at a younger age than Piaget thought

6.1 Piaget’s Theory

“Impossible” Event

The Child as TheoristYoung children develop theories that organize knowledge about properties of objects and living thingsBy 6 months, know that 1st object striking 2nd object will cause 2nd to move Toddlers understand different properties of animate and inanimate objects

6.1 Piaget’s Theory

Colliding Cylinders

Familiarization:Medium cylinder collides with bug

Test with Large Cylinder:Large cylinder collides with bug

Test with Small Cylinder:Small cylinder collides with bug

Results of Colliding Cylinder Experiment

6.2 Information Processing

Basic Features of the Information-Processing ApproachLearningMemoryUnderstanding the WorldIndividual Differences in Ability

Basic Features of the Information-Processing….

People and computers are both symbol processors Hardware: sensory, working, and long-term memorySoftware is task specific

6.2 Information Processing

Components of Mental Hardware

LearningHabituation: diminished responding to a stimulus as it becomes familiar Classical conditioning: neutral stimulus elicits a response that was originally produced by another stimulusOperant conditioning: focus on consequences and reoccurrence of behavior6.2 Information Processing

Memory

Babies remember, forget, and can be prompted to recall forgotten material Infantile amnesia: inability to remember events from early in life (can be explained by development of language and sense of self)

6.2 Memory

Understanding the World

Infants distinguish quantities because small quantities may be perceptually obvious Infants have an egocentric frame of reference but will develop and objective frame of reference later

6.2 Information Processing

Test of Quantity

Individual Differences in Ability

Individual differences are measured in mental tests for infants and toddlersScores from infant intelligence tests are not related to later IQ scores Habituation in infants is a better predictor of later IQ

6.2 Information Processing

6.3 LanguagePerceiving SpeechFirst Steps to SpeakingFirst WordsFast Mapping Meanings to WordsStyles of Learning Language

Perceiving Speech

Phonemes are sounds that are the building blocks of language.Young babies can hear phonemes, even those not in their language.Infant directed speech may help children learn language.

6.3 Language

Infant Listening to Phonemes

First Steps to Speaking

2 months--cooing5 or 6 months--babbling7 or 8 months--babbling includes intonationDeaf children “babble” in sign language

6.3 Language

First Words

Infants understand that words are symbolsFirst words include people, animals, food, and toysGestures are symbols that children start to use around the time they begin to talk

6.3 Language

Fast Mapping Meaning to Words

Children learn words too rapidly to be starting from scratch on each oneJoint attention, simple rules, and sentence cues help children learn word meaningsUnderextensions and overextensions are 2 common errors

6.3 Language

Boz Blocks

Styles of Learning Language

Referential style: vocabularies consist mainly of words that name objects, persons, or actionsExpressive style: vocabularies include many social phrases that are used as a single word (e.g., “go-away,” “I-want-it”)

6.3 Language