Powerpoint 3
formal operational stage
11-16. More abstract than concrete operational thoughts. Adolescents can conjure up make-believe situations and try to reason logically about them. Increased tendency to think about thought itself. Abstract, logical, idealistic way of thinking.
preoperational stage
2-7/ Children begin to represent world with images, words, and drawings. Symbolic thought goes beyond simple connections of info and action.
concrete operational stage
7-11. The child can now consider logically about concrete events, understand the concept of conservation, organize objects into hierarical classes, and place objects in an ordered series
short-term memory
A limited capacity system in which information is retained for as long as 30 seconds unless the info is rehearsed in which case it can be retained longer. Developed mostly at childhood and at a slower pace through adolescence
Schema
A mental concept or framework that is useful in organizing and interpreting information. Use assimilation and accommodation.
Long term memory
A relatively permanent memory system that holds huge amounts of information for a long period of times. Increase in middle/ late childhood years. Likely occurs through adolescence
Equilibration
A shift in thought from one state to another
Psychometric/ intelligence view
A view that emphasizes the importance of individual differences in intelligence; many advocates of this view favor intelligence tests
Analytical intelligence
Ability to analyze, judge, evaluate, compare, and contrast
Creative intelligence
Ability to create, design, invent, originate, and imagine
Pratical intelligence
Ability to use, apply, implement, and put ideas into practice
Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development
Adolescents are motivated to understand their world because doing so is biologically adaptive. To make sense of the world, adolescents organize their experiences and adapt their thinking to include new ideas. They also adapt their thinking to include new ideas because the additional info furthers their understanding.
reflective and relativistic thinking
Adolescents often view the world in terms of polarities - Right/wrong - We/they - Good/bad With age, adults become aware of diverse opinions and multiple perspectives of others giving way to reflective, relativistic thinking
Sternberg's triarchic theory of intelligence
Analytical, creative, and practical intelligence.
Realistic and Pragmatic Thinking
As adults face the constraints of reality, their idealism decreases
Mindfulness
Being alert, mentally present and cognitively flexible while going through life's everyday activities and tasks
The synaptic connections that are used and strengened will be "pruned" What will result from this pruning?
By the end of adolescence individuals have fewer, more selective, and stronger neuronal connections than they did as children.
Neurotransmitters
Chemicals that carry information across synaptic gaps between neurons. Levels change during puberty
Divided attention
Concentrating on more than one activity at the same time
Attention
Concentration and focusing of mental effort
The brain depends on experiences to determine how
Connections are made
Researches primarily focus on what aspect of the brain over time?
Context-Inducing plasticity
important structural brain changes during adolescence involve the
Corpus callosum prefrontal cortex limbic system amygdala
Fuzzy-trace theory dual-process model
Decision making is influenced by two cognitive systems- one analytical and one experimental that compete with each other. The model emphasizes that it is the experimental system that benefits adolescents' decision making
What is needed to become an expert?
Deliberate practice- practice that is at an appropriate level of difficulty, provides feedback, and allows repetition. Such practice requires considerable motivation
What determines whether or not someone becomes an expert?
Deliberate practice-practice at am appropriate level of difficulty for the individual, provides corrective feedback, and allows repition-is required. Such extensive practice requires considerable motivation
Experts are better than novices at
Detecting features and meaningful patterns of information, accumulating more content knowledge and organizing it in a manner that shows understanding of the topic, retrieving important aspects of knowledge with little effort
In addition to metacognitive skills, it is also very important to teach
Domain-specific thinking skills
What activity is greater in the limbic system pathways in early adolescence than at any other point in development?
Dopamine
Location of intelligence in brain
Early consensus was the frontal lobes. Studies show that a a distributed neural network involving the frontal and parietal lobes in related to higher intelligence
Commonly promoted link between neuroscience and education is that most key changes in brain occur prior to adolescence
Education can considerably benefit adolescents in several areas of higher-level cognitive functioning
Emotional maturity may also affect cognitive development in several ways
Emerging and young adults become more aware that emotions influence their thinking
emotional intelligence
Emphasizes interpersonal, intrapersonal and practical aspects of intelligence. Ability to perceive and expression emotion accurately and adaptively, ability to understand emotion and emotional knowledge, ability to use feelings to facilitate thought, ability to manage emotions in oneself and other
Do biological changes in the brain or experiences that stimulate these changes come first?
Evidence that environmental experiences make important contributions to the brain's development
Neoconstructivist view emphasizes the importance of interactions between
Experiences and gene expression in the brain's development
Self- oriented thoughts, such as worrying, self-doubt, and intense emotionally laden thoughts, may interfere with what?
Focusing attention on thinking tasks
Selective attention
Focusing on a specific aspect of an experience while ignoring others
What is the role of processing speed?
Generally, fast processing is linked with good performance on cognitive tasks.
prefrontal cotex
Highest level of the frontal lobes involved in "judgement." last part of brain to be fully developed
Changes in white/gray matter during adolescence
Increase in white matter and decrease in gray matter in prefrontal cortex
Improved critical thinking during this period are enabled by several cognitive changes
Increase speed, automaticity, and capacity of info processing, Greater knowledge in a variety of areas Increased ability to construct new combinations of knowledge A greater range and more spontaneous use of stratified and procedures for obtaining and applying knowledge
Preference for immediate rewards
Increased at 14-16 and then declined; and impulse control increased in a linear fashion from preadolescence to emerging adulthood
Why does white matter increase?
Increased myelination and possibly due to an increase in the diameter of axons
Working memory
Individuals manipulate and assemble info when they make decisions, solve problems, and comprehend written and spoken language. Adolescents is an important period for improvement in working memory. Impacted by sleep deficits.
Information-processing view
Information processing includes how info gets into adolescents' minds, how it is stored, and how adolescents retrieve info to think about and solve problems.
Cognitive flexibility
Involved being aware that options and alternatives are available and adapting to the solution. Confidence in one's ability to adapt their thinking is also an important factor
Cognitive control
Involves effective control and flexible thinking in a number of areas, including controlling attention, reducing interfering thoughts, and being cognitively flexible
Schooling influences intelligence
Largest effects occurring when adolescents have no formal education for an extended period, which is linked to lower intelligence
Amygdala
Limbic system structure involved in emotions. Depth of emotions is stronger then prefrontal cortex can handle
Sustained attention
Maintaining attention to a selected stimulus for a prolonged period. Improves in adolescents due to maturation of frontal lobes.
The neuroscience of intelligence
Moderate correlation found between brain size and intelligence. Some experts reason the highest level of intelligence that involves reasoning is linked to the prefrontal cortex. However, other researchers recently found a link between a distributed neural network in the frontal and parietal lobes of intelligence.
Brain size and higher intelligence
Moderate correlation. Einstein's brain was average
White matter
Myelinated axons
Can new brain cells be generated in adolescence?
Neurogenesis has been documented in the hippocampus and the olfactory bulb. The functions of these new brain cells are not known and they appear to last for only several weeks
Early formal operational thought
Newfound ability to think in hypothetical ways produced by unconstrained thoughts with unlimited possibilities; assimilation is the dominant process
Criticisms of Vygotsky's theory
Not specific enough about age-related changes No adequate description about how changes in socioemotional capablities contribute to cognitive development Overemphasis on role of language in thinking Emphasis on collaboration and guidance has potential pitfalls
hypothetical-deductive reasoning
Piaget's formal operational concept that adolescents have the cognitive ability to develop hypotheses, or best guesses, about ways to solve problems
Important connections between what strengthens in late adolescence and emerging adulthood
Prefrontal cortex and limbic system. Important for emotional control.
One way to encourage critical thinking
Present a controversial topic and show both sides of the issue to discuss
Divergent thinking
Produces many answers to the same question and is a characteristic of creativity
Convergent thinking
Produces one correct answer and is a characteristic of the kind of thinking required on a conventional intelligence test
Vygotsky's Zone of Proximal Development (ZPD)
Range of tasks that are too difficult for an individual to master alone, but that can be mastered with the guidance and assistance of adults. Vygotsky's concept of the difference between what a child can do alone and what that child can do with the help of a teacher
What plays a key role in adolescent decision making?
Recent research reveals that the presence of peers in risk-taking situations increases the likelihood that adolescents will make risky decisions
Postformal thought
Reflective, relativistic, and contextual: may think more deeply about areas of life Provisional: More skeptical Realistic: thinking isn't always abstracts and must be realistic and pragmatic Recognized as being influenced by emotion: understand thoughts influenced by emotion In young adults more than adolescents
Piaget contributions
Responsible for the current field of cognitive development current vision of children as active, constructive thinkers current belief that a concept doesn't emerge all of a sudden, fully developed, but develops instead through a series of partial accomplishments that lead to an increasingly comprehensive understanding.
A concern is that adolescents' creative thinking appears to be declining
School environments that encourage independent work, are stimulating but not distracting, and make resources readily available are likely to encourage students creativity
Piaget criticisms
Some cognitive abilities emerge or later than Piaget thought Not as stage like Neo-Piagetians conclude his theory doesn't focus enough on attention, memory, and cognitive strategies adolescents use to process information and his explanations are too general Culture exerts a stronger influence on development than Piaget envisioned
What doe we know about applying information about brain development to adolescents education?
Speculative statements that are far removed for what is known about the brain
Vygotsky's theory is a social constructivist approach
That is, it emphasizes the social contexts of learning and the construction of knowledge through social interaction. The end point of cognitive development can differ, depending on culture. Children and adolescents construct knowledge through social interaction
Intelligence
The ability to solve problems and to adapt and learn from everyday experiences
Creativity
The ability to think in novel ways and discover unique solutions to problems
Accommodation
The adjustment of a schema to new information. Schema changes
Can the adolescent's brain recover from injury?
The brain during adolescence has a remarkable ability to repair itself. Although the brain retains considerable plasticity in adolescence, the earlier a brain injury occurs, the greater likelihood of a successful recovery
Information processing is influenced by
The capacity and speed of processing.
Three parts of the neuron
The cell body Dendrites: receiving parts axon: carries information away from the cell body to other cells
Adolescent egocentrism
The heightened self-consciousness of adolescents, which is reflected in their belief that others are as interested in them as they are in themselves, and in their sense of personal uniqueness and invulnerability
Assimilation
The incorporation of new information into existing knowledge. Schema does not change
memory
The retention of information over time. Central to mental life and to information processing
Social cognition
The way individuals conceptualize and reason about their social worlds
Critical thinking
Thinking reflectively and productively and evaluating evidence
Later formal operational thought
Through accommodation, intellectual balance is restored as adolescents test their reasoning against reality. Accommodation. Piaget revised his view and concluded that formal operational thought is not fully completed until 15-20.
Labouvie-Vief
Understand cognitive changes in adulthood is necessary to consider how emotional maturity might effect cognitive development. Adolescents become more aware that emotions influence their thinking, but at this point thinking is often swayed by negative emotions that can produce distorted and self-serving perspectives. In this research, a subset of emerging adults who are high in empathy, flexibility, and autonomy are more likely to engage in complex cognitive thinking. This way of thinking increase in muffle adulthood. In middle age, individuals become more inwardly reflective and less context-dependent in their thinking than they were as young adults.
Researches recently found the search for and presence of meaning was linked to what? also which 5 components were assessed?
Wisdom. This was assessed considering critical life experiences, reminiscence/reflectiveness, openness to experience, emotional regulation, and humor.
Cognitive control increases
With age across childhood and adolescence.
Does social contexts play a role in decision making?
Yes
Pragmatism
ability to reason from practical perspective, make choices knowing one isn't going to get them everything they want.
Changing way of thinking as a result of new information
accommodation
Lapsley and colleagues conclude that distortions in the imaginary audience and personal fable involve the
adolescent's ego and changes in perspective taking
The ability to judge, evaluate, compare, and contrast is known as ___
analytical intelligence
Executive function
and umbrella-like concept that involves higher-order, complex cognitive processes such as Exercising cognitive control, making decision, reasoning, thinking critically, thinking creatively, metacognition. These processes are linked to the development of the brain's prefrontal cortex and involve managing one's thoughts to engage in goal-directed behavior and exercise self-control.
Elements of Deliberate Practice
appropriate level of difficulty, corrective feedback, repetition
Imaginary audience
attention-getting behavior
Pitfalls of using information about an adolescent's intelligence in negative ways
avoid stereotyping and expectations know that IQ is not a sole indicator of competence
Theory of Mind
awareness of one's own mental processes and the mental processes of others
Myelination
axon becomes covered and insulated with layer of fat cells (myelin sheath), increasing the speed and efficiency of information processing in the nervous system. Continues into adolescence and emerging adulthood.
neuroconstructivist view
biological processes and environmental experiences influence the brain's development. The brain has plasticity and is context dependent; and development of the brain is linked closely w cognitive development.
sensorimotor stage
birth to about 2 years of age. Infants construct and understanding of the world by coordinating sensory experiences (such as seeing and hearing) with physical, motor action.
Neurons are connected in precise ways to form the various structures in the brain, from the
bottom up, with sensory areas reaching full maturity before the higher level association areas of the prefrontal cortex
Most people make better decisions when they are
calm
Metacognition
cognition about cognition, or knowing about knowing
According to the neuroconstructivist view, development of the brain is closely linked with
cognitive development
corpus callosum
connects brains 2 hemispheres. Thicken in adolescence to process information more effectively
Although adolescents are capable of very strong emotions, their prefrontal cortex hasn't adequately developed to the point at which they can
control these passions
Schools don't focus enough on
critical-thinking skills needed in everyday life.
IQ test is considered a measure of
current performance
Gray matter
dendrites and the cell body of the neuron
Reduced connectivity between brain's frontal lobes and amygdala was linked to
depression
Developmental social neuroscience is a recently developed field that focuses on connections between
developmental, socioemotional factors, and neuroscience
Cool executive functioning
driven by emotion, with emotion regulation as an important process
Hieghtened self-consciousness during adolescence
egocentrism
Ability to manage emotions in oneself and others
emotional intelligence
Cognitive control also has ben referred to as inhibitory control or effortful control to
emphasize the ability to resist a strong inclination to do one thing but instead do what is most effective
Critical thinking is thinking reflectively, thinking productively, and
evaluating evidence
Wisdom
expert knowledge about the practical aspects of life that permits excellent judgement about important matters. Mainly emerges in late adolescence and early adulthood
Monica, age 16, is able to understand that a poem has another, less literal meaning and that the words are actually referring to life choices instead of paths in a forest. Monica is in Piaget's
formal operations
The increase in myelination allows
greater connectivity and integration of brain regions
Increased complexity of cultures has generated a
greater need for more reflective, complex thinking that tales into account changing nature of knowledge and challenges
Two categories of executive functioning
hot executive function and cool executive function
Formal operational thought is full of
idealism and possibilities
Increased metacognitive ability during adolescents results in
improved cognitive functioning and learning
Studies seeking correlation between neurological speed and intelligence
inconsistent results
Dopamine
increase in neurotransmitter dopamine occurs in both prefrontal cortex and limbic system during adolescence. Linked to risk taking and drug use
Genetics and environment interact to influence
intelligence
Hot executive functioning
involves conscious control driven by logical thinking and critical analysis
Personal fable
involves the sense of personal uniqueness and invulnerability
Vygotsky's Theory
knowledge is situated and collaborative. Knowing can best be advanced through interaction with others in cooperative activities. Knowledge is distributed among people and their environments.
During adolescence, it is as if the prefrontal cortex doesn't yet have the brakes to slow down the
limbic system's emotional intensity and moderate its reward focus.
Executive functioning works when adolescents are
making decisions, thinking critically, and engaged in thinking about thinking
What is thought to increase cognitive control
maturation of brain pathways and circuitry
IQ
mental age divided by chronological age times 100
One trend involving divided attention is adolescents'
multitasking. If a task is complex and challenging, multitasking reduces attention to the key task.
loosing sense of smell
olfactory bulb.
Gardner and Sternberg's theories include
one or more categories related to social intelligence
As a result of having varying degrees of all of these intelligences
people learn and process info in different ways
Factors other than age are critical for wisdom, such as
personality related factors such as openness to experience and creativity are better predictors of wisdom than cognitive factors such as intelligence. Factors other than age are critical: life experiences/ values. Very rare. Time frame: late adolescence/ early adulthood.
Executive attention
planning actions, allocating attention to goals, detecting and compensating for errors, monitoring progress on tasks, and dealing with novel or difficult circumstances
Conceptualization of metacognition includes several dimensions of executive functioning, such as
planning, evaluation, and self regulation
According to the neuroconstructivist view, the brain has
plasticity and is context-dependent
Heavy media multitasking in adolescence is linked to
poor memory, increased impulsivity, and reduced volume in the cerebral cortex/
Wisdom is linked to
practical and academic intelligence. The key is a balance between self-interest, the interests of others, and contexts that produce a common good.
Most-information-processing psychologists argue that an increase in capacity improves
processing of info
An increase in executive attention supports the
rapid increase in effortful control to effectively engage in complex academic tasks
Prefrontal cortex is primarily involved with
reasoning, decision making, risk taking
Limbic system
reward system. Increased preference for immediate rewards at 14-16, then declines.
Metacognition includes knowledge about
strategies
Heredity
strong influence of heredity on intelligence. Researchers have found that IQs on identical twins are more similar than those in fraternal twins, but in some studies the difference isn't large
What does pruning of synaptic connections indicate?
the activities adolescents choose to engage in influence which neural connections will be strengthened and which will disappear
One potential influence on intelligence test performance is stereotype threat-
the anxiety that one's behavior might confirm a negative stereotype about one's group
Elkind argued imaginary audience and personal fable are due to
the cognitive geocentricism involved in the transition to formal operational thought
Long memory depends on
the learning activities engaged in when an individual is learning and remembering info
As part of the prefrontal cortex's rural leadership and organizational role
the prefrontal cortex likely coordinates the best neural connections for solving a problem
individual differences
the stable, consistent ways in which people are different from each other
Some developmentists argue what about formal operational thought?
there are 2 sub periods
If a solid basis of fundamental skills were not developed during childhood, critical thinking skills are
unlikely to develop in adolescence
Gardners 8 frames of mind
verbal, mathematical, spatial, bodily-kinesthetic, musical, interpersonal, intrapersonal, naturalist