AP Psychology : Cognitive Development
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Example Question #21 : Cognitive Development
According to Piaget's cognitive developmental theory, which child is most likely to comprehend and successfully answer a version of the conservation task?
6-year-old Carlos
4-year-old Henry
9-year-old Jake
2-year-old Jazmin
9-year-old Jake
Piaget's concrete operational stage maps onto ages 7-11. Children during this stage are first able to successfully answer the conservation task. Prior stages include sensorimotor (0-2 years) and preoperational (2-6 years).
Example Question #21 : Cognitive Development
In what stage of cognitive development, as defined by Jean Piaget, does the developmental accomplishment of conservation occur?
Preoperational stage
Concrete operational stage
Formal operational stage
Sensorimotor stage
Concrete operational stage
Conservation refers to a child's ability to recognize that the volume or amount of a substance or object does not change when its form or shape changes. This ability develops in the concrete operational stage around the age of 7 to 11 years old. Before the development of conservation, if a fat, wide glass of water is poured into a thin, tall glass, then the child might believe that the amount of water has decreased since the second glass appears slimmer. All the other choices are actual developmental stages in Piaget's sequence, but the stage in which conservation first develops is in fact the concrete operational stage.
Example Question #41 : Dimensions Of Psychological Development
Jean Piaget, a pioneer in developmental psychology, spent years studying cognitive development and the onset of certain abilities at certain ages. He wrote about four stages of cognitive development. Which of the following choices lists these stages in the correct order?
Sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational
Concrete operational, sensorimotor, preoperational, formal operational
Formal operational, preoperational, sensorimotor, concrete operational
Sensorimotor, concrete operational, formal operational, preoperational
Preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational, sensorimotor
Sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, formal operational
Piaget says every human goes through a variety of stages in our cognitive development in a fixed way. The correct order is sensorimotor (0-18 months), preoperational (2-6 years), concrete operational (6-12 years), and formal operational (12-adult).
Example Question #21 : Cognitive Development
Most people follow a typical pattern of aging. As one gets older, what tends to happen in regards to fluid and crystallized intelligence?
Both crystallized and fluid intelligence increase
Both crystallized and fluid intelligence decrease
Crystallized intelligence increases; fluid intelligence decreases
Crystallized intelligence increases; fluid intelligence remains the same
Crystallized intelligence decreases; fluid intelligence increases
Crystallized intelligence increases; fluid intelligence decreases
Crystallized intelligence is acquired through experience and refers to general knowledge that is stored in long-term memory. Fluid intelligence refers to a person's ability to reason and problem solve when encountering new situations. Fluid intelligence is innate; therefore, it is not based on learning and experience. For most people crystallized intelligence increases into adulthood and fluid intelligence begins decreasing after adolescence.
Example Question #21 : Cognitive Development
Four-year-old Linda is sitting in the park with her father. She sees a cat walk by and exclaims, "Look dad it's a doggy!" Linda's reaction is an example of which of the following processes?
Conservation
Object permanence
Assimilation
Accomodation
Egocentrism
Assimilation
Jean Piaget described how children adapt to the world through assimilation or accommodation. "Assimilation" occurs when a child encounters a new object and uses an already existing schema to identify it. In this example, the child is exposed to a cat and uses the existing schema of "doggy." On the other hand, "accommodation" occurs when a child encounters a new object and changes an existing schema. "Conservation" is a term that Piaget uses to describe a child's ability to understand volume (i.e. a quantity remains the same despite a change in appearance). Conservation develops during the concrete operational stage. "Egocentrism" is characteristic of the preoperational stage and refers to a child's inability to see other people's point of views. Last, 'object permanence" is characteristic of the sensorimotor stage and refers to a child's ability to understand that objects continue to exist even when they are hidden.
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