Theories of Development

1. Theories of Development How each theory describes childhood development. Application of each theory to: Language development Pro and Antisocial behaviour Gender roles Parenting Styles

2. Theories • COGNITIVE Theory – Piaget • LEARNING Theory – Skinner • SOCIAL LEARNING Theory-Bandura • PSYCHODYNAMIC Theory - Freud • ATTACHMENT Theory - Bowlby

3. COGNITIVE THEORY - Piaget Mental Processes and how they develop

4. Cognitive Skills Make a list of what you think are mental processes

5. Cognitive skills (mental processes) counting Reasoning Memory Problem solving Language Development Thinking Reading Perception Writing Mathematical skills How we understand the world

8. Jean Piaget (1896-1980) was one of the 20th centuries most influential researchers in the area of developmental psychology. He recognized there was a difference between infant, child and adult understanding of the world. Infants have simple concepts of the world and develop more complex concepts as they get older Piaget

9. Assimilation & Accommodation Infants have simple ‘SCHEMAS’ – a package of information stored in memory e.g. sucking & grasping, basic reflexes. More complex schemas are developed through; ASSIMILATION – making sense of a new situation + ACCOMODATION - Adjusting an existing schema

11. Assimilation & Accommodation Play is very important in providing the opportunity to develop new schemas. The type of play-things that present challenges are very useful. This type of learning is called ‘discovery learning’ This allows the child to acquire many concepts such as numbers, shapes, size, spatial relationships A child’s innate (genetic) ability AND the environment they are born into are important

12. Task: research the internet/children’s toy shops and make a list of ‘discovery learning’ toys.

13. 4 Stages of Cognitive development Piaget came up with 4 stages of development, these stages are universal: SENSORIMOTOR 0-2yrs Stages PREOPERATIONAL 2-7yrs Piaget CONCRETE OPERATIONS 7-11yrs Called FORMAL OPERATIONS 11+ FOr

14. 1.SENSORIMOTOR (0-2) 0-8m 8m+ Mainly reflex responses Object permanence develops Little evidence of thinking processes Child deals with the world through sensations e.g. crying, noise, comfort

16. 2. PREOPERATIONAL STAGE 2-7YRSSplit into two ages 2-4yrs(preconceptual) & 4-7yrs (intuitive) • 2-4 YRS – Preconceptual thinking • Start to use objects to represent another. • Attribute motives to objects • Unable to see a situation from another’s point of view – Children • assume others see/feel the same as the child does. • This is known as EGOCENTRISM

17. 2-4yrs children pick what they see, not what the doll sees. ‘Egocentrism’ 7 yrs consistently pick what the doll Sees. Child is able to ‘Decentre’

18. Task: P40 – Hughes replicated Piaget’s study using a different method; • Make notes on the method he used • What did he find? • How does this compare to Piaget’s findings? • Why explanation is given for the difference in findings?

19. 2. Preoperational stage 4-7yrs Intuitive • Child tends to judge situations on appearance alone, without logical reasoning MAN WOMAN

20. 3. Concrete Operations 7-11ys • Child can deal with logic but only if it is real (Concrete) not abstract e.g simple arithmetic. • There are number of tests aimed to see whether children apply logic or judge on appearance, these are called ‘Conservation’ tests.

21. 3. Concrete Operations 7-11ys

22. Conservation Tests 16% of U7’s in Piaget’s test correctly identified that the rows had equal numbers of marbles

23. Replications of Piaget’s test found that when a Teddy interfered with the marbles, 60% of U7’s conserved. This suggests that seeing the researcher interfere implies that there will be a difference in numbers because the researcher intentionally interferes. Showing the teddy unintentionally makes the children focus on the test rather than the intention – Therefore children can conserve earlier than Piaget originally assumed.

24. Further conservation tests Which beaker contains the most water? Piaget found that U7’s cannot conserve because they do not yet use logical thought.

25. Concrete operations stage 7-11 • A child who can ‘conserve’ shows: • A period of ‘DECENTRING’ – not being egocentric e.g completing the mountains task successfully. • Being able to take more than one feature of a situation into account at one time.

26. 4. Formal Operations 11+ Children demonstrate an advanced ability to think using language

27. 4. Formal Operations 11+ Children demonstrate ABSTRACT thinking – using concepts that cannot be demonstrated. EG: Concrete thought: Abstract thought: This is a puppy, it is a mammal. Mammals give birth to live babies and have backbones…… Abstract thinking enables us to think up complicated ideas without having to see the concrete/practical issues at first hand This is a puppy

28. Hypothetical thinking • Children demonstrate an ability to think about the possible consequences of situations that have not actually occurred. • Imagine if you were…….. • What would it be like if dogs could talk? • They would say ‘woof’ (children in earlier stages) • They would say ‘why did you have to have kids?’ TEST: Where would you put a third eye & why?

29. Evaluation of Piaget’s Theory Each stage may not be as distinct as Piaget proposed, some succeed in one test but not another Too much emphasis on the role of individual discovery – ignores the role of others STAGES Development may be more gradual p.66 penguin

30. Evaluation of Piaget’s Theory Piaget’s work made a significant contribution to our understanding and has had many practical applications in education and parenting. Children may not have understood the tests PIAGET’S TESTS Piaget’s research was pioneering. he used very detailed observation techniques and reporting methods Improvements in the tests showed children develop the tested abilities earlier than Piaget suggested – so Perhaps the timings are incorrect, not the theory itself. p.66 penguin

31. APPLICATION of Piaget’s theory • Write a report detailing the practical applications that Piaget’s theory has in terms of: • Parents • Teachers • Play Opportunites

32. APPLICATION Parents, teachers & carers need to understand that young children think differently from older children and need to see practical demonstrations to understand new ideas Learning is not just about having information pumped into you We learn by constructing our own understanding of the world

33. Applications of Piaget – Learning through play • Children should have access to play objects that are designed to shape understanding. • Conversations with children are very important in shaping their understanding.

34. Theories COGNITIVE Theory – Piaget LEARNING Theory – Skinner SOCIAL LEARNING Theory-Bandura PSYCHODYNAMIC Theory - Freud ATTACHMENT Theory - Bowlby

35. Learning Theory - Skinner Frederick Skinner (1904 – 1990) was a highly influential American Psychologist. He was the founder of a psychological theory called ‘BEHAVIOURISM’ (also known as ‘LEARNING THEORY’. All behaviour is learned and our behaviour develops through the consequences that follow. We are shaped by our environment – products of what happens to us

36. Learning Theory If behaviour is rewarded we are likely to repeat it… If our behaviour is ‘REINFORCED’ it makes it more likely that we will repeat that behaviour.

38. Skinner researched his theory by using rats and pigeons. He found that they learned to press a lever that offered them food and learned to avoid a lever that punished them. He gradually trained them to distinguish between the colours of lever too using a method that is called the ‘Skinner Box’. Make notes on his procedure/findings

39. Operant Conditioning Skinner called this learning by reinforcement (reward) OPERANT CONDITIONING What happens when a child accidentally drops her spoon?

40. Reinforcement • Positive reinforcement = rewarding, we are likely to repeat this behaviour. • Negative reinforcement = unpleasant, we learn to avoid this.

41. Punishment • Punishment is the opposite of reinforcement and has the result of blocking behaviour, whilst reinforcement strengthens it

42. Application of Learning Theory • Child rearing • Prosocial & Antisocial behaviour • Gender roles • Language development

43. Child rearing • Close contact between child & career is rewarding, food is rewarding as it is associated with close contact, the child becomes attached to the carer as they are positively reinforced. the carer becomes attached to the child as they in turn are positively reinforced (child stops crying/smiles/coo’s). EG: a child with a soiled nappy is uncomfortable – the carer changes the nappy and the child is relieved, this reinforcement is associated with the presence of an adult. = =

45. Pro and anti-social behaviour

46. Pro-social behaviour • Helpful behaviour intended to benefit another. • These types of behaviours develop because they are encouraged

47. Application to anti-social behaviours • Some antisocial behaviours bring direct rewards e.g. stealing • Some are reinforced by ‘respect’ from others • Parents may reinforce aggressive behaviour • Disruptive behaviour brings attention

48. Applications to Gender Roles

50. Applications • Boys are praised for assertive behaviour • Girls are praised for more caring behaviour • Girls & Boys receive differential treatment • BUT some parents take great care to avoid differentiating treatment, yet gender differences still remain – this suggests biological factors must be considered.