Human Development: Major Issues

• Nature/Nurture– Genes/Environment

• Continuity/Discontinuity– Stage Theorists: Piaget, Kohlberg, Erikson

• Stability/Change– Born Outgoing, Always Outgoing?

Piaget’s Theory-Cognitive Dev.• Stage Theory Organization

– Sensorimotor period: Birth -2• Schemas • Assimilation/Accommodation

– Categorization/Classification

• Object Permanence• Rooting Reflex (physical)• Circular reaction reflexivity non reflexive motions

(physical)• Visual Cliff- Perceptual Depth

• The infant interacts with the world thru sensory and motor activities.

Schemas & Stranger Anxiety

Infancy: Cognitive Development

• Preferences for faces

• Visual Cliff experiments

Preoperational Stage (ages 2-7)

• Egocentrism– Collective monologue

• Symbol Acquisition-language

• Pretend Play/Social Learning Theory

• The child represents objects with words and mental images

Pretend Play – Jack & Mason

Concrete Operational (ages 7-11)

• Reversibility- puppy lab, lab puppy

• Conservation- matter doesn’t increase/decrease because it changes form.

• The child shows more logical thinking.

• Mathematical transformations

• Child can think logically about concrete events.

Formal Operational (ages 11 & up)• Abstract thinking emerges• Hypothetical thinking emerges

– Concrete objects no longer need to be present• Metacognition• Can take others’ perspectives/imaginary

audience• Thinking through hypotheses• Not all adolescents/adults achieve formal

operational thinking.

Thought in Childhood and Adolescence

Child Adolescent• Limited to what is Considers possibilities

• Limited to present Considers abstract concepts and ideas

• Haphazard testing Planned testing

• Own view Perspective of others