PSYC 1000 Chapter Notes - Chapter 10.2: Cognitive Development, Dishabituation, Scientific Method
Document Summary
10. 2 infancy and childhood: cognitive and emotional development. The science of cognitive development is the study of changes in memory, thought, and reasoning processes that occur throughout the lifespan. The sensorimotor stage: living in the material world. During this stage, children can think about physical objects, although they have not quite obtained abstract thinking abilities (ie. they cannot manipulate information effectively and see things from other points of view). The concrete operational stage (ages 7 to 11) is when children develop skills in logical thinking and manipulating numbers. Children in this stage are able to classify objects according to properties such as size, value or shape. The formal operational stage: abstract and hypothetical thought. The formal operational stage (age 11 to adulthood) involves the development of advanced cognitive processes such as abstract reasoning and hypothetical thinking. Scientific thinking, such as gathering evidence, is characteristic of this stage.
