The current studies (N = 255, children ages 4-5 and adults) explore patterns of age-related continuity and change in conceptual representations of social role categories (e.g., "scientist"). In Study 1, young children's judgments of category membership were shaped by both category labels and category-normative traits, and the two were…

A good deal of research purports that bilingualism has a positive effect on some aspects of cognitive functioning. However, this effect is not consistent, and little research examines trajectories of cognitive skill development in bilingual children. Moreover, it remains unclear whether different types of bilingualism impact how cognitive…

According to Lev S. Vygotsky (1896-1934), the highest levels of abstract thinking and self-regulation in preschool development are established in "pretend play using object substitutions." An extensive research literature supports Vygotsky's empirical model of the internalization of self-guiding speech (social speech > private speech…

Young children can engage in diagnostic reasoning. However, almost all research demonstrating such capacities has investigated children's inferences when the individual efficacy of each candidate cause is known. Here we show that there is development between ages five and seven in children's ability to reason about the number of candidate causes…

Suor et al. (2017) present a compelling new evolutionary framework that offers an alternative interpretation of the well-established findings of cognitive deficits in children raised in harsh early environments. They argue that such findings do not convey a complete picture of those children's cognitive development, because children's cognition…

This research examined the effectiveness of Multipurpose Unit Early Classroom Intervention Program (MUECIP) prepared for 4-5-year-old (48-60 months) children whose development is at risk because of their families' socioeconomic conditions. The research adopted a preliminary test-final test control group trial model. The research participants were…

This study examined the development of flexibility and abstraction in preschool children by using a newly designed Pattern Completion Task (PCT) and the Flexible Item Selection Task (FIST). In the PCT, children were presented with an incomplete pattern consisting of different-colored shapes and were asked to select the colored shape that…

Research over the past 20 years has revealed that even very young infants possess expectations about physical events, and that these expectations undergo significant developments during the first year of life. In this article, I first review some of this research, focusing on infants' expectations about occlusion, containment, and covering events,…

Canadian children follow an apparent sequence in the development of a concept of nationality from a verbal level of understanding of geographical relationships (beginning about age six), to an ability to demonstrate spatial relationships, then to an understanding of one's nationality, at about age 10. There are important educational implications.…

Children follow a Piagetian cognitive-developmental sequence in their ability to understand age concepts, as shown by the association between responses on the Concept of Age instrument and level of reasoning on conservation tasks. Education in aging must consider the reasoning patterns of children of various ages. (Author)

A survey of undergraduate education methods texts indicates that students are repeatedly exposed to the theories of Jean Piaget, with an emphasis on the stages of development and characteristics of preschool children. The suggestion is made that an evaluation should be undertaken of misconceptions that undergraduate students might develop as a…

This paper examines the cognitive process of concept development in preschool children, based on recent psychological research. Rather than attempting an exhaustive review of the more than 7000 articles written on children's concepts of categories, the paper highlights and illustrates four key themes that emerge from recent research: first,…

A review of groundbreaking studies in child development by Piaget, Vygotsky, Baillargeon, Premack, and Woodruff suggests that the ideal learning environment would need to have developmentally appropriate and challenging activities; nurturing experts; plenty of social interaction; and opportunities for problem solving, thoughtful reflection, and…

The use of symbols in the play of young children during the preoperational period of cognitive development provides the foundation in representation that will be needed later when using higher abstract forms such as written words. (JN)