Question 1

Research on event knowledge during infancy relies on which method?

Accepted Answer

Research on event knowledge during infancy relies heavily on the violation-of-expectation method. This method involves presenting infants with a series of events that either violate or are consistent with their expectations about the way the world works, and then measuring their looking time or other responses to different events. This allows researchers to make inferences about infants' understanding of causal relationships, object permanence, and other fundamental aspects of their physical and social environment. Structured interviews with parents and stimulus-response methods may be useful in other contexts, but are not as commonly used in studies of infant cognition.

Question 2

Little Malcolm, at 16 months, loves to place his toy cars and blocks on the coffee table and push them off, just to watch them fall to the floor. Malcolm's curiosity has led him to experiment with other objects, such as his mother's cookie jar, in his fascination with falling objects. Malcolm is probably in what substage of the sensorimotor stage of development?

Accepted Answer

Malcolm is in the tertiary circular reactions substage, which occurs from about 12 to 18 months of age. In this substage, children experiment with new behaviors to see what effects they will have, showing a more sophisticated understanding of cause-and-effect relationships. Malcolm's behavior of dropping various objects to see what happens is a classic example of the experimentation and curiosity seen in this substage.

Question 3

Alice's 3-month-old baby, Joshua, finds sucking his fingers very pleasurable after accidentally placing his hand in his mouth one day before nap time. Joshua now prefers to suck on his fingers instead of his blue pacifier. Joshua is most likely in which substage of Piaget's sensorimotor stage of development?

Accepted Answer

At 3 months old, Joshua is most likely in the primary circular reactions substage of Piaget's sensorimotor stage of development. In this substage, infants engage in repetitive behaviors that involve their own bodies, such as sucking their fingers or toes. It is called primary because the behavior is centered on the infant's own body and the effects it produces.

Question 4

Beverly's baby, Grant, at the age of 6 months loves to shake his yellow rattle, which makes soft sounds interesting to Grant. This child is probably in what substage of Piaget's sensorimotor stage of development?

Accepted Answer

Grant is in the secondary circular reactions substage, which occurs from about 4 to 8 months of age. In this stage, babies become more focused on the world around them and begin to repeat actions that affect their environment, such as shaking a rattle to hear the sound it makes.

Question 5

During the substage of Piaget's sensorimotor stage called tertiary circular reactions, children first begin to

Accepted Answer

During the tertiary circular reactions substage, children experiment with new behaviors and explore the properties of objects, acting like "little scientists" to see the effects of their actions.

Question 6

Piaget believed that children do not possess operations until

Accepted Answer

Piaget believed that children do not possess operations until they are able to represent the world in their mind and use symbols. This typically occurs during the preoperational stage of development, which begins around 2 years old. Prior to this stage, children are still in the sensorimotor stage and are primarily focused on exploring and interacting with their environment through their senses and movements.

Question 7

When a child is able to imitate a complex behavior exhibited by a model at a previous time, the child is capable of

Accepted Answer

Deferred imitation refers to the ability to replicate a behavior observed at a previous time. It involves the ability to remember an action or behavior and reproduce it after a delay. The other options (delayed responses, postponed cognitions, delay of gratification) do not specifically refer to this type of ability.

Question 8

The stage "the invention of new means by mental combination" is characterized by the beginnings of

Accepted Answer

The invention of new means by mental combination involves the ability to use symbols to represent objects, which is a key aspect of symbolic thought. This stage is associated with the development of mental representation and the ability to use symbols to solve problems and communicate ideas. Conservation, adaptation, and intentional behavior are important aspects of later stages of cognitive development.

Question 9

One of the major achievements of Piaget's sensorimotor stage is the development of the concept of

Accepted Answer

Piaget's sensorimotor stage is characterized by the development of object permanence, which is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they are no longer visible or present. This is a major cognitive achievement, as infants initially believe that objects only exist when they are within their perceptual field. The development of object permanence is essential for the later development of language, problem-solving, and symbolic thought.

Question 10

An underlying principle of Piaget's developmental stage theory is that

Accepted Answer

Piaget's developmental stage theory posits that all children pass through the same sequence of stages, but the rate of passage through the stages may vary. This means that each child will eventually reach the same stages, but the speed at which they do so may differ. Piaget believed that each stage represents a qualitatively different way of understanding the world, and that children must pass through each stage in order to reach the next. However, he acknowledged that different environmental and cultural factors could affect the rate at which children progress through the stages.

Question 11

Which of the following is NOT a core knowledge system during infancy?

Accepted Answer

Understanding how to solve multi-step problems relating to physical objects is not typically a core knowledge system during infancy. Infants may have some basic problem-solving abilities, but not to the level of multi-step problem-solving. The other options (A, B, and D) are all core knowledge systems during infancy.

Question 12

In order to evaluate infants' knowledge of object permanence, Baillargeon tested whether

Accepted Answer

Baillargeon's experiment involved presenting infants with a possible event, such as an object rolling behind a screen, and an impossible event, such as an object appearing to pass through a solid wall. If infants looked longer at the impossible event, it was taken as evidence that they had a basic understanding of object permanence. Infant distress, searching behavior, or surprise to toy removal are not definitive measures of object permanence understanding.

Question 13

Which one of the following stages does NOT occur during the sensorimotor stage of development?

Accepted Answer

The preconceptual period occurs during the preoperational stage of development, not the sensorimotor stage. The sensorimotor stage includes the stages of primary circular reactions, coordination of secondary circular reactions, and tertiary circular reactions.

Question 14

During the sensorimotor stage of development, the child shifts

Accepted Answer

The sensorimotor stage of development is characterized by the child's ability to coordinate sensory information with motor actions. In the beginning, the child's actions are reflexive and not intentional. As the child develops, they begin to use symbols to represent objects or experiences, which demonstrates a shift from being purely reflexive to using symbolic thought.

Question 15

Which of the following is the correct order of Piaget's stages of intellectual development?

Accepted Answer

Piaget's stages of intellectual development are in sequential order, starting with the Sensorimotor stage (birth to 2 years old), followed by the Preoperational stage (2 to 7 years old), the Concrete Operational stage (7 to 12 years old), and finally the Formal Operational stage (12 years old and up). Choice C is the only option that lists these stages in the correct order.

Question 16

Object permanence is the ability acquired when the child recognizes

Accepted Answer

Object permanence refers to a child's ability to understand that objects continue to exist even when they are not directly seen or sensed. Option A correctly describes this ability. Option B relates to the concept of conservation, which is different from object permanence. Option C and D are unrelated to the concept of object permanence.

Question 17

During the substage of Piaget's sensorimotor stage called coordination of secondary circular reactions, children can combine schemata to

Accepted Answer

During this substage, children begin to intentionally combine schemata to achieve a goal or solve a problem. They may use previously developed circular reactions in new combinations to achieve their goals.

Question 18

Ray, age 5 months, watches as his father places his stuffed teddy bear beneath his baby blanket during a game of peek-a-boo. His father notices, however, that Ray forgets about the bear if it is hidden for more than a few seconds. Ray has not yet developed

Accepted Answer

Object permanence is the understanding that objects continue to exist even when they cannot be seen or heard. Ray's behavior suggests that he has not yet developed object permanence.

Question 19

Penny's new baby, Trevor, is 3 weeks old. Trevor finds natural satisfaction and contentment by sucking on the nipple of his bottle. Trevor is in what substage of Piaget's sensorimotor stage of development?

Accepted Answer

Trevor is in the Reflex Activity substage, which is the first substage of Piaget's sensorimotor stage, occurring from birth to approximately 1 month of age. This stage is characterized by reflexive behaviors, such as sucking, which Trevor is exhibiting.

Question 20

According to Piaget's theory, cognitive development is based on changes in intellectual structures that result from

Accepted Answer

Piaget's theory emphasizes that cognitive development is driven by an innate drive to understand, organize, and adapt to the environment. It is not primarily shaped by external environmental factors, nor is it solely the result of biological maturation or stimulus-response sequences. Rather, it involves active construction of mental structures through the interaction of biological maturation, experience, and social interaction.

Quiz 8: Cognitive Development: Piaget and Vygotsky