PSY 407 Exam 1

Cognition
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Terms in this set (52)
Cognition
the mental processes or faculties by which knowledge is acquired and manipulated
Dependent Variables
measured or outcome variables
Development Changes
involve relatively permanent (or enduring) changes in structure or function that occur with the passage of time
Function
refers to actions related to the structure
What does function refer to?
action by the child
What kin of relationship is development between structure and function?
bidirectional relationship
What are some central issues in developmental science?
1. nature and nurture
2. development is dynamic
3. development is cumulative and lifelong
4. developmental changes are both qualitative and quantitative
What does it mean to say that something is innate?
there are some genetically-based constraints or biases on development
Qualitative
change in type or kind of thinking (not so much as knowing more, but knowing differently)
Quantitative
changes or differences in things that can be counted-such as an increase in the amount of knowledge or speed of processing
What is the major difference between our brains and brains of other higher primates?Humans have evolved a greater amount of area that is devoted to the cerebral cortex. (increased surface area with folds)At birth, the brain weighs how much of its eventual adult weight?about 25%In the first few years, what shows the greatest growth?neocortex, especially frontal lobesNervous Systemsends and receives electro-chemical messagesCell membrane (of neuron)semi-permeable; covers entire neuronsoma (cell body)found in cortexaxon hillock (located at the *)where neuron decides to send on signal or notdendritereceive incoming electrical signalsaxonthe neuron extension that passes messages through its branches to other neurons or to muscles or glands (projects to other neurons)myelincovers axon; speeds up conduction and insulatessynapsethe junction between the axon tip of the sending neuron and the dendrite or cell body of the receiving neuronaction potentiala neural impulse; a brief electrical charge that travels down an axon; happens at the axon hillock; sodium in, potassium outneurotransmitterchemical used by a neuron to transmit an impulse across a synapse to another cellWhat are the 3 stages of neural development?1. Proliferation 2. Migration 3. DifferentiationProliferationas soon as neural tube is formed, precursor neurons (not yet neurons) are created through mitosis from the ventricular zone of neural tubeMigrationonce formed, neurons have to move to different areas of brain where they collect with other neurons to form various brain structures; move in big waves; mistakes can happen and faulty neural migration has been associated with many disordersDifferentiationonce at final destination, neurons begin to grow in size, produce larger and larger dendrites and extend axons; synapses created; synaptogenesis and selective cell death occur; process of synapse formation very rapid during early years of life when brain is first becoming organizedWhat happens to neurons and circuits that are not being used?prunedOther rises and declines in neural development...1. metabolism of brain increases sharply after 1st year of life and peaks at about 150% of the adult rate between ages 4-5 years 2. after about 5 years, glucose consumption slows downWhat are the last areas to myelinated?integrative systems (Prefrontal Cortex)What process is gradual and follow proximodistal (midline to extremities) and cephalocaudal (head to foot) pattern?MyelinationWhat are the names of William Greenough's processes?Experience-Expectant Process & Experience-Dependant ProcessExperience-Expectant Processbrain development that occurs based on environmental experiences that all members of the species typically encounterExperience-Dependent Processbrain development that occurs based on unique environmental stimuli shared only by individuals in particular environmental circumstancesWhat are the "Functional Invariants"?1. Organization 2. Adaption 2. EquilibrationOrganizationthe innate tendency for thought to have a structure; schemes (know and understand the world around us based on these)Adaptionthe innate tendency to interact with the world around us.What are the two indissociable processes of Adaption?Assimilation and AccommodationAssimilationincorporation of new information into already existing schemes - a bending, distorting, filtering of new informationAccommodationa current scheme is changed to incorporate new informationEquilibrationan innate internal self-regulating mechanism that propels development forwardWhat are Piaget's four stages of cognitive development?1. Sensorimotor 2. Preoperational 3. Concrete Operational 4. Formal OperationalSensorimotor Stagein Piaget's theory, the stage (from birth to about 2 years of age) during which infants know the world mostly in terms of their sensory impressions and motor activities; object permeance is developingPreoperational StageIn Piaget's theory, the stage from (2-7 years) where child has thought based on representational schemes - can now mentally represent the world; semiotic function constructed (ability to use one object to stand for another)What are some limitations of the Piaget's Preoperational Stage?cognitive egocentrism; semi-logical and somewhat rigid thought; difficulty with conservationConservation (Piaget)the understanding that a fundamental property of an object is the same, even though its appearance has changedConcrete Operational Stagein Piaget's theory (7-11 years), the stage of cognitive development during which children gain the mental operations that enable them to think logically about concrete events; are now using cognitive operations; difficulty with hypotheticals and abstractionsCognitive Operationan internalized action which is reversible and part of an organized wholeFormal Operational Stagein Piaget's theory, the stage of cognitive development (11-15 years) during which people begin to think logically about abstract concepts; thought based on formal operational schemes; can use hypothetico-deductive reasoning; can now use and argue from hypotheticalsPiaget's Contributions to Child Development1.reinforced the idea of the child is an active, self-motivated agent 2. equilibration model first attempt to explain, not just describe, cognitive development 3. discovered and introduced many interesting and useful concepts in cognitive development (e.g., object permeance, conservation) 4. provided a rich and largely accurate description of children's thinking at different ages 5. has had a HUGE impact on educational practice 6. incredibly fertile theory - generate vast amount of researchProblematic Issues with Piaget's theory1. competence or performance? (underestimated children's competencies) 2. training studies 3. poorly defined and operationalized such concepts as accommodation, assimilation, equilibration, cognitive structureIs cognitive development really as homogeneous or even across a given level of development as Piaget proposed?A whole lot more diversity in children's thinking across different tasks than Piaget proposed. Thinking probably much more domain-specific