Overview
This lecture covers key theories and studies on cognitive development, including Piaget, Vygotsky, Baillargeon, development of social cognition, theory of mind, and the roles of mirror neurons in social understanding.
Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
- Cognitive development occurs through active discovery and the formation of schemas (mental knowledge packages).
- Disequilibrium occurs when new information doesn’t fit existing schemas, resolved by assimilation (adding to existing schema) or accommodation (changing/creating schemas).
- Four stages:
- Sensorimotor (birth–2yr): object permanence develops.
- Pre-operational (2–7yr): symbolic thinking, egocentrism, trouble with conservation and class inclusion.
- Concrete operational (7–11yr): logical thinking about concrete events, improved conservation, less egocentric.
- Formal operational (11+ yr): abstract, hypothetical thinking.
- Studies: Object permanence (Piaget, 1963), egocentrism (Piaget & Inhelder, 1956), conservation (Beaker Task).
- Criticism: Underestimates children’s abilities; alternative tasks (McGarrigle & Donaldson) show better performance.
Vygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Development
- Cognitive development is shaped by social interaction and cultural tools (language, technology).
- Child as apprentice: learning through internalizing others’ knowledge.
- Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD): gap between independent ability and potential with expert help (scaffolding).
- Study: Wood & Middleton (1975) found effective scaffolding improves learning.
- Vygotsky’s theory supports one-to-one tuition and considers cultural differences in concept development.
Baillargeon: Early Infant Abilities
- Infants possess a physical reasoning system (innate knowledge) for object permanence, gravity, and causality.
- Violation of expectation method: longer looking at impossible events suggests infants’ surprise and understanding.
- Studies: Truck and ramp, Minnie Mouse doll study.
- Criticism: Some argue longer looking is due to novelty, not knowledge; abilities may develop post-birth, not be innate.
Development of Social Cognition
- Social cognition: understanding intentions, emotions, and perspectives.
- Selman’s stages of perspective taking (egocentric → mutual → societal role-taking).
- Studies show age correlates with perspective-taking improvements; parenting style influences development.
- Criticism: Lacks focus on empathy and emotion.
Theory of Mind and Autism
- Theory of mind: recognizing others have internal states and beliefs.
- Autism linked to deficits in theory of mind ("mind blindness").
- "Sally-Anne" study (Baron-Cohen, 1985) showed autistic children struggle with false belief tasks.
- Theory of mind develops between 4–6 years; false belief tasks may be too complex, not lack of mechanism.
Mirror Neuron System
- Mirror neurons fire when observing or performing actions, allowing simulation and understanding of others’ intentions.
- Also linked to empathy by simulating emotional experiences.
- Defective mirror neuron system may contribute to autism.
- Criticism: Studies are reductionist, and scanning lacks neuron-level detail.
Key Terms & Definitions
- Schema — mental framework formed from experience.
- Assimilation — integrating new info into existing schema.
- Accommodation — modifying schema or forming new ones for new info.
- Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD) — distance between current ability and potential with help.
- Scaffolding — structured support given during learning.
- Object permanence — understanding objects exist when out of sight.
- Egocentrism — inability to see from another’s perspective.
- Conservation — understanding quantity remains despite appearance change.
- Theory of mind — ability to attribute mental states to oneself and others.
- Mirror neurons — neurons that fire both during action and observation.
Action Items / Next Steps
- Review flashcards in the SSY Boost app.
- Revise Piaget, Vygotsky, Baillargeon theories and associated studies.
- Understand key experiments and criticisms for each theory.
- Prepare for questions involving application and evaluation of these developmental theories.