Factors that influence the incidence of utilization deficiencies and other recall/strategy-use patterns on a strategic memory task were evaluated in two hundred and fourteen 7- and 9-year-old children. Both utilization deficiencies and the incidence of children showing increases in both recall and strategy use over phases were more likely to be…

Generic sentences (such as "Birds lay eggs") are important in that they refer to kinds (e.g., birds as a group) rather than individuals (e.g., the birds in the henhouse). The present set of studies examined aspects of how generic nouns are understood by English speakers. Adults and children (4- and 5-year-olds) were presented with scenarios about…

The medial temporal lobe memory system matures relatively early and supports rudimentary declarative memory in young infants. There is considerable development, however, in the memory processes that underlie declarative memory performance during infancy. Here we consider age-related changes in encoding, retention, and retrieval in the context of…

Latent class analysis (LCA) has been successfully applied to tasks measuring higher cognitive functioning, suggesting the existence of distinct strategies used in such tasks. With LCA it became possible to classify post hoc. This important step forward in modeling and analyzing cognitive strategies is relevant to the overlapping waves model for…

The use of gaze shifts as social cues has various evolutionary advantages. To investigate the developmental processes of this ability, we conducted an object-choice task by using longitudinal methods with infant chimpanzees tested from 8 months old until 3 years old. The experimenter used one of six gestures towards a cup concealing food; tapping,…

Using a sample of resident fathers in the Early Childhood Longitudinal Study-Birth Cohort (9-month Father Study), this study examined how father involvement is associated with infant cognitive outcomes in two domains (babbling and exploring objects with a purpose). Results from a series of logistic regression models indicate that varied aspects of…

Many youth in the United States lack clear occupational aspirations. This uncertainty in achievement ambitions may benefit socio-economic attainment if it signifies "role exploration," characterized by career development, continued education and enduring partnerships. By contrast, uncertainty may diminish attainment if it instead leads…

Using data from the first 2 phases of the NICHD Study of Early Child Care, the authors examine the links between maternal employment in the first 12 months of life and cognitive, social, and emotional outcomes for children at age 3, at age 4.5, and in first grade. Drawing on theory and prior research from developmental psychology as well as…

The Boehm Test of Basic Concepts (BTBC) (Boehm, 1971) was administered to 99 children (ages 7-10) who had been diagnosed as learning disabled and attended special schools in the New York area. It was hypothesized that the learning disabled children would exhibit a delay in the acquisition of the basic concepts, but would display a similar order of…

Forty-four 7- and 8-year-old boys were classified as having high or low concrete reasoning ability or as being in a transitional state. Findings indicated that frustrated boys exhibit regression more than nonfrustrated boys and that the extent to which they regress is dependent upon cognitive level. (GO)

This study identified new methodological variables which might affect the responses of second and third grade children to Piagetian conservation tasks. (GO)

The purpose of this study was to measure the development of forethought in children as a function of age, thereby documenting a normal use of this facility. It was hypothesized that forethought would develop on a continuum increasing with age, with no significant differences due to sex of the child. To test this hypothesis, items were pooled which…

Three experiments assessed the ability of 2 to 5-year-old children to infer, under very simple task conditions, what another person sees when viewing something from a position other than the children's own. (ST)

The developmental sequence of preschool children's moral judgments, and their emphasis on intentions versus property damage was investigated. Eight moral judgment stories with drawings were read to twelve 3 1/2- and twelve 4 1/2-year-old children (mean ages = 46.6 and 54.0 months, respectively). The stories included either positive or negative…

This experiment investigated age differences in memory performance and the extent to which rehearsal techniques contribute to these differences. Second and sixth grade children were trained in a variety of rehearsal techniques in an overt-rehearsal free recall task. (Author/SB)