1. Young Adult Cognitive Development

2. Is hurting EVER okay?

3. Is killing EVER okay?

4. Is sleeping with your neighbor’s wife EVER okay? Are all terrorists bad people?

5. Changes in the Structure of Thought Postformal thought- Perry’s theory –Interviewed at end of each year of college –Younger- Dualistic thinking Dividing information, values, and authority into –Right/wrong, good/bad, we/they –Older- Relativistic thinking-Giving up the possibility of absolute truth in favor of multiple truths, each relative to its context

6. Changes in the Structure of Thought Schaie’s Theory –Acquisitive stage (childhood and adolescence) 1 st 2 decades- knowledge acquisition Concrete-formal operational thought –Achieving stage (early adulthood) People must adapt cognitive skills to situations (such as marriage and employment) that have profound implications for achieving long-term goals. Less focus on acquiring knowledge, more on applying it to everyday life. –Responsibility stage, Re-integrative stage

7. Information Processing: expertise and creativity Expertise: acquisition of extensive knowledge in a field Experts remember and reason more quickly and effectively Approach problems with underlying principles Creative products are not just original, but directed at a social or aesthetic need Movement from problem solving to problem finding  accomplished artists and scientists