Cognitive and Physical Development (Chapter 12) Lecture Outline: Basic questions Infant development Jean Piaget’s stage theory Videotape on infant skills (Magna M10)

Early neurological development w 90% of neural growth completed by age 6 w At birth, brain stem developed but cerebral cortex is immature w Brain growth influenced by diet: vitamins and fat w Early brain trauma, seizures, or reflex difficulties indicate neurological abnormalities

Six months gestation: Nervous system and crucial internal organs

Last three months: Body weight, surface features (hair, skin)

Basic Developmental Questions w Maturation vs. learning; hair color is canalized (high nature); writing is not (high learning) w Continuity vs. discontinuity; Stages occur in sequence, rapid transition, behavior organized locomotion, butterflys, sexual maturity at what age do these transitions happen? w Domain generality vs. specificity; how generalized is a new behavioral skill? Does deductive reasoning lead to numbers (geometry) and verbal (poetry) advancements?

What can neonates do? w John Locke tabula rosa,and James “blooming, buzzing confusion” w We now think infants can do much more: visually: focal length, tracking, preference for “face” and contrast auditory: startle, respond to voice contours gustatory: sweet and own mother’s breast milk smell; don’t like sour touch: rooting, grasping; but why stepping reflex?

Jean Piaget’s Theory w Coherent problem-solving underlies children’s thought and progresses through a series of stages w Schemas, are mental frameworks that allow children to adapt to their environment w Assimilation: New information fits existing schemas: bang spoons and sticks on pots; w Accommodation: New information does fit -- schema must change: squeeze “Teddy” but not the dog

Stages of development w Sensorimotor: birth to age 2; reflexive actions are used to provide sensations egocentrism, object permanence, and representational thought by 2 w Pre-operational: age 2 to 7; representational thought and verbal communication intentional experimentation with objects and language through play literal-mindedness, e.g., chicken pox, chocolate, = 5

Most young children would agree that both rows have the same # of cows Preoperational children age 2-7 would think there were more cows in the top row Conservation of number Children who have reached the Formal Operations stage of cognitive development (age 7-11 years) will recognize that the number of cows has not changed even though they appear to take up more space due to the increased distance between them.

Videotape: Overview of cognitive milestones in infancy