Understanding of preterm infant cognitive competences across the first year of life is limited regarding the developmental constructs of continuity, stability, coherence, and predictive validity as well as how they manifest by age and country of origin. This prospective longitudinal study examined and compared mean-level continuity,…

Children prenatally exposed to opioids exhibit impairments in cognitive functioning and have an increased likelihood of experiencing other forms of adversity. Given that these other forms of early life adversity are linked to lower levels of cognitive functioning, it is important to determine whether the association between opioid exposure and…

Growth models (GM) of the mixed-effects and latent curve varieties have become popular methodological tools in lifespan research. One of the major advantages of GM is their flexibility in studying individual differences in change. We scrutinized the change functions of GM used in five years of publications on cognitive aging. Of the 162…

The development of emotion understanding in young Chinese preschoolers was examined. The overall developmental trend, as measured by the Test of Emotion Comprehension (TEC), proved similar to that found among preschoolers in Western Europe. However, Chinese children performed better at understanding the distinction between real and apparent…

Studies investigating the development of memory processes and their neural substrates have flourished over the past two decades. The review by Jabès and Nelson (2015) adds an important piece to our understanding of the maturation of different elements and circuits within the hippocampal system and their association with the progressive development…

The study of development vacillates between a focus on change (i.e., studying how and why infants are so different from adults) and excitement about early competence and continuity (i.e., studying how capable infants are, and marveling at how similar they turn out to be to adults). The study of memory development has been no exception. This…

Optimal cognitive development is defined in this article as the highest level of cognitive function reached in each cognitive domain given a person's biological and genetic disposition, and the highest possible maintenance of cognitive function over the adult life course. Theoretical perspectives underpinning the development of a framework…

This study used longitudinal data from the Young Lives Project in Ethiopia to examine the main factors relating to preschool access and their potential effects on cognitive performance of children aged five and eight years. The results show that only one quarter of the preschool-aged children have the opportunity to attend this vital stage of…

This article documents differences in cognitive development, as measured by the Peabody Picture Vocabulary Test (PPVT), between children from households with high and low socioeconomic status (SES) in two different phases of early childhood in four developing countries. A large number of potential mediators, such as urban residence, preschool…

Explores longstanding inconsistencies in Piaget's account of development of spatial representation and perspective-taking. Examines Piaget's early writings and the findings of the original "three mountains" experiment. Concludes that Piaget's alternative theory is compatible with contemporary thinking and is important as a contributory…

Examines the fallacies about the nature of abilities and learning and about the interaction between sense modalities which follow from the dichotomy in relation to explanations of spatial development in the blind. Suggests that interactions between cognitive and perceptual factors need to be considered to explain more adequately effects of sensory…

Studied the relationship of joint mother-child planning before and during tasks, and the ability of four and eight year olds to plan on their own. Found that older children planned more effectively, especially during tasks, and that mothers of younger children concerned themselves with task procedures rather than strategy. (MDM)

Presents an integrated view of contributions made by various sections within cognitive psychology in which problems of consciousness are addressed. Implications concerning the relationship between cognition and behavior are pointed out. (Author/RH)

Imitation by infants functions in two ways: (1) to help the individual understand a puzzling event, and (2) to indicate mutuality with another person. Although changes in cognitive understanding influence the course of imitation, the occurrence of imitation in specific situations may be governed by the interplay of the two functions that imitation…

Studies seven experiences of 69 infants of 12 1/2 and 17 1/2 months in dyadic play with mothers, fathers, and first-borns. Mothers and fathers were more alike than different in the amounts of play experiences they created, and infants experienced a more enriched environment with parents than with first-borns. (RJC)