developmental psychology revision...

ALMAHAACADEMYGIRLSPSYCHOLOGYDEPARTMENT

2018-19

Name:_____________________________________Date:______________________________________

DEVELOPMENTALPSYCHOLOGYREVISIONPACK


2018-19

Learningobjective:-Understandearlybraindevelopment,includingthedevelopmentofthe:

a) Forebrainb) Midbrainc) Hindbraind) Cerebellume) Medulla

• Hindbrain-sleeppatterns,senseofequilibrium(emotionalbalance)• Midbrain-sensoryinformation,sleep,simplemovement• Forebrain–cognitive,auditory,sensory.

Thesedevelopinthepre-natalstage.

3or4weeksofpregnancy

• Alongtubedevelopsinthebrainwhichthendividesfromthefrontinto3distinctroundsections(forebrain,midbrain,hindbrain).

5weeks

• Forebrain&hindbrainsplitagain.• Forebrainsplitsintoanterior(front)andposterior(behind)• Thehindbrainsplitsthroughthemiddle• Themidbraindoesnotdivide.


2018-19

6weeks-Cerebellum

• Thecerebellumdevelopsandafter1yr.thecerebellumgrows3timesbigger.

• Thecerebellumcontrolsphysicalskillswhichdevelopalotoverthistime,possiblyaccountingforthegrowth.

• Cerebellumisinvolvedinresponsessuchasfearandprocessingsenseinformation.

20weeks–Medulla

• Locatedinthehindbraininfrontofthecerebellum.Controlsinvoluntaryresponsessuchassneezing,breathing,heartrateandbloodpressure.Italsoconnectstherestofthebraintothespinalcord.

BuildingNeuralconnections

• Akeypartofababy’sbraindevelopmentisthehugeincreaseinthenumberofneuralconnectionsfrombirthto3yrsold.

• 700-1000connectionsformeverysecond!• Thisallowsfastcommunicationbetweendifferentareasofthebrain.• Thebraindoublesinsizeinthefirstyear.• Andreaches80%ofitssizebyage3.

Learningcheck!

• Howmanybrainregionsarethere?• Whataretheycalled?• Whattwoareasarealsopartofthehindbrain?• Whyareneuralconnectionsimportant?


2018-19

LearningObjective:Understandtheroleofeducationandintelligence,includingPiaget’sTheoryofCognitivedevelopment,andthefourstagesofcognitivedevelopment,includingstrengthsandweaknessesofthetheory:

a) Sensorimotore)Schemab) Pre-operationalf)Assimilationc) Concreteoperationalg)Accommodationd) Formaloperationalh)Equilibrium

Definitions

• Education:theprocessofreceivingorgivingsystematicinstructions,especiallyataschooloruniversity.

• Intelligence:theabilitytoacquireandapplyknowledgeandskills.• Cognitive:thementalactionorprocessofacquiringknowledgeand

understandingthroughthought,experience,andthesenses.

Leaningcheck!Checkthenextpageandanswerthefollowingquestions:-Sensorimotorstage

• Whatagedoesthesensorimotorstagehappen?• Whathappensat4months?• Whatisobjectpermanence?

Pre-operationalstage

• Whatagedoesthepre-operationalstagehappen?• Whatageisthesymbolicfunctionstage?• Whatagedoestheintuitivethoughtstage

happen?• Whatissymbolicplay?• Whatisegocentrism?• Whatisanimism?• Whatiscentration?• Whatisirreversibility?

ConcreteOperationalstage

• Whatagedoestheconcreteoperationalstage?

• Whatisreversibility?• Whatisconservation?• Whatisdecentration?

Formal-operationalstage

• Whatagedoestheformaloperationalstagehappen?

• Whathappensinthisstage?


2018-19

Learningobjective:-UnderstandhowPiaget’sstagesofdevelopmentareappliedineducation.

• Piaget’stheoryhasbeenappliedtoclassroompractices.• Histheorysuggeststhatchildren’sactionsandinteractionsaffecttheir

thinking,andthattheycannotdocertainthingsuntiltheyreachtheappropriatestageofdevelopment

Example:

• Youngchildrenareegocentricandcannotunderstandtheteacher’sviewpointsomightnotdoastheyaretoldbecauseoflackofunderstandingnotbecausetheyarebeingnaughty.

• Childrenbuildtheirownschemas(representationsoftheworld)fromtheirownexperiencesandsotheyindividuallybuildtheirownknowledgeandunderstanding.

Tohelpsensorimotordevelopment(birth–2yrs)

• Theyneedlotsofstimulationandmaterialstopracticeskillsandbuildschema’s

• Colourisimportantandtheuseofbrightcoloursisusedtohelpchildrenknowthedifferencesbetweenthem

• Singingandrhythmcanstimulatechildren'slanguageanddevelopment• Hearingdifferentsounds,touchingdifferencetexturesisbeneficial• Stimulationhelpschildrenengagewiththeworldandbuildschema’sor

ideaswhichishowtheylearn.

Tohelppre-operationaldevelopment(2-7yrs)

• Childrenmust‘do’thingstolearnandtokeepbuildingschema’s,ratherthanwatchsomeoneelseperformactions.

• Theyneedlotsofexperiencestoextendtheirunderstanding.• Seenas‘littlescientists’,buildingideasthroughexperimenting.• Learnthroughdiscoverybyinteractingwiththeenvironment,notby

beingtold.• Theirindividuallearningmustbeencouragedanddeveloped.• Usingmodels,objects,visualaids,suchasdrawinganddiagramscan

helplearningwhilstkeepinginstructionsshort.


2018-19

Tohelpconcreteoperationaldevelopment(7-12yrs)

• Teacherscanaskchildrentoconcentrateonmorethanoneaspectofanissue.

• Teacherscanassumechildrencanunderstanddifferentviewpointsontheirownsoteacherscanstructuretasksaccordingly.

TohelpFormalOperationaldevelopment(12+yrs)

• Childrencandiscussabstractconceptsandcanbeaskedcomplexquestionsinvolvingmentalreasoning.

• E.g.learningdifferentsubjectsatschoolandbeingabletorelatebiologytopsychologyorhistorytogeography.

Leaningcheck!

• Howwouldyouhelpachildinthesensorimotorstageofdevelopment?• Whatthingswouldstimulatetheirthinking?• Howwouldyouhelpachildinthepre-operationalstageofdevelopment?• Whatthingswouldstimulatetheirthinking?• Howwouldyouhelpachildintheconcreteoperationalstageofdevelopment?• Whatthingswouldstimulatetheirthinking?

ExamStylequestion–Answerinyourexampackpage7.

FredaandSimoncandodifferentthings.Simoncanputpensintosizeorder.

Fredacanworkoutwhichistheslowestandwhichisthefastestifsheknowsthatahorsecanrunfasterthanadogandadogcanrunfasterthanahedgehog.

ExplainwhichstageeachchildisinaccordingtoPiaget’sstagesofdevelopment.


2018-19

LearningObjective:Understandhowchildrendevelopmentalprocessingforlearningsothatchildrendevelopintelligence.

Thedevelopmentofintelligence

• Piagetheldthatchildrendevelopthroughadaptation-theyadjusttotheworldastheyexperiencenewthings.

• Thedevelopmentofintelligenceisaboutbuildingknowledgeandskills.• Intelligenceisdevelopedthroughbuildingschemasviaadaptationsand

throughthefourstagesofcognitivedevelopment.

Leaningcheck!Whatstageisit?Achildseeingazebraforthefirsttimeandcallingitahorse-AssimilationAchildsees3motorssidebyside,atruck,abikeandanormalcarandpointingtothetruckandsaying‘truck’-EquilibriumAchildpointingtoadogandsaying‘dog’-Accommodation


2018-19

EvaluationofPiaget’sTheoryofcognitiveDevelopment

Strengths

Practicalimplications

• OnestrengthofPiaget’stheoryisthatithaspracticalimplications,meaningwecanuseitintherealworld.

• Piaget’stheoryfocussesoneachindividualstagesodiscoverylearningcanbecateredtoeachagegroup.

• Whenchildrenlearnattheirownpace,theyareabletobuildknowledgeusingschema’sandcanworkaccordingtotheirstageofdevelopment.

Generatedmoreresearch

• AnotherstrengthofPiaget’stheoryisthatithasgeneratedalotofresearchintodevelopmentincludingexperimentstoshowtheexistenceofthestagesandhowchildrenbuildknowledgethroughschemas.

• Researchhasoftensupportedhisideas.

Weaknesses

Socialinteractions/culturalsettings

• OneweaknessofPiaget’stheoryisthathedidnotlookattheinfluenceofsocialinteractionsortheculturalsettings,whichcanaffectthedevelopmentofpatternsofthought.

Subjective

• Themethodsusedtogatherevidenceforthetheorycamefromhisinterviewsandobservationswithchildren.Asaresult,hisinterpretationsmayhavebeensubjective,leadingtosomebiasinhisfindings.

LackofValidity

• Otherstudiesusingsimilarmethodsbutinmorerealisticsettingsproduceddifferentfindings,suggestinghistheorylacksvalidity.


2018-19

StudyOne

PiagetandInhelder(1956)Threemountainstask.

Aim(s)

Tostudytheperspectivesofchildrenandinvestigaterelationshipsbetweenthechild’sviewpointandtheirperceptionoftheviewpointofothers.

Procedure

Sample–100childrenwereused:

21wereagedbetween4and6years’old



16wereagedbetween9and12yearsold.

Ametersquaremodelwasmadetorepresentthreemountains.Therearefourdifferentviewpoints–A,B,CandD–andadollismovedaroundthemountainmodeltoeachofthepositions.


2018-19

Thechildisgiven10picturesofthemountainstakenfromvariouspositionsaroundthemodel.Theyalsohavethreepiecesofboard,shapedandcoloredtomatcheachmountaininthemodelofthethreemountains,whichtheycanmoveandarrangetorepresentthemodel.

Intrialone,thechildisseatedinpositionAandaskedtoarrangetheboardstorepresentthemountainstheycanseeinthemodelfrompositionA.NextthedollisplacedinpositionCandthechildisaskedtoarrangetheboardstorepresentwhatthedollcansee.TheprocedureisrepeatedwiththedollbeingmovedtopositionBandthenD.

ThisprocedureisagainrepeatedwiththechildmovingtopositionB,andthedollbeingplacedinpositionsA,CandD.Theprocedurecontinuesuntilthechildhasviewedthemodelfromallfourofthepositions–A,B,CandD.

Inthesetests,thechildisalsoaskedtoreconstructtheirboardsfromoneoftheirpreviousviewpoints;forexample,whenseatedinpositionCtheymaybeaskedtorecreatewhattheycouldseewhentheywereinpositionA.

Followingthistest,asecondtrialisconducted.Thechildanddollareagainmovedaroundthemountainsinthesamemanner,butthechildisaskedtoselecttheviewpointofthedollfromtenphotographspresentedtothematthesametime.

Finally,athirdtrialisconductedwherebythechildselectsapictureanddecideswheretoplacethedollonthemodelinordertobeabletoseetheviewthatmatchesthepicture.

Results

4to6yearolds

Trialone:thechildrenrearrangetheboardsbuttheoutcomeistheirownviewpointofthethreemountains.Childrentowards6yearsoldshowanattempttorepresentthedolls,butoftenreverttotheirownperspective.Thechildrenwereusuallyabletorecollectandreproducetheirpreviousviewpointsfrommemory.


2018-19

Trialtwo:thechildrenselectthepicturethatrepresentstheirownviewpointofthethreemountains,orappeartorandomlyselectanyimageofthemodel.

Trialthree:thedollismostlyplacedanywhereonthemodel,ornotmovedfromwhereitisalreadyplaced.

7to12yearolds

Thechildrenaged7to9yearsattempttoreflecttheviewpointofthedoll,butthisisnotconsistent.

Between9and12yearsold,thechildrendemonstrateamasteryintheskillofviewingthemodelfromtheviewpointofthedoll.

Conclusions

Childreninstage2(pre-operational)failtoseetheviewpointofthedoll,insteadregardingtheirownpointofviewastheonlyonepossible.PiagetandInheldersuggestthatthisisduetotheegocentrismofchildreninstage2.

Whilethechildrenareabletoreplicatetheirpreviousviewpointsfrommemory,theyappearunabletopredictotherviewpointsofthemountains.PiagetandInheldersuggestthatthisisduetothereasoningskillsofchildreninstage2.

Childreninstage3(concreteoperational)begintoshowunderstandingofotherpeople’sviewpoints.Attheyoungerage,thechildrenwereseentoselectapicturefromtheirownperspectivebuttoturnthistowardsthedollsothattheimagecouldbeseenbythedoll.Thisindicatedthestartofanabilitytounderstandthatthedollhasadifferentviewpoint.

Bytheendofthisstage,childrencouldaltertheirboardsandselectpicturesthatrepresentedthedoll,demonstratingthategocentrismhassubsided.


2018-19

EvaluationofPiagetandInhelderStudy(1956)

Strengths

Theyprovidedagreatdealofdetailaboutwhatwasdoneandtheresults.

Qualitativedata-richindetailandindepth.• Theylookedindetailattheerrorsandwhateachchilddid.Thismeant

theycouldshowthatasachildnearedthenextstageofdevelopment,theycouldachieveelementsofthatnextstage.

Theyusedexperimentalmethods.

• Carefulcontrolswereinplace,suchasthesamemodelandquestions.Thisallowedcomparisonstobemadebetweentheresultsfromdifferentchildren.

Reliability• Repeatingthestudywithmanychildren,movingthedollandusing

differentwaysofgettingthechildtoshowwhattheysaworwhattheythoughtthedollsaw

Weaknesses

HelenBroke(1975)

• ChangedPiagetandInhelder’stasktomakeitmoreappropriateforyoungerchildren.UsedthepuppetGroverfromSesameStreetandletchildrenturnthemodelofmountainsbyusingaturntable.

• Shefound3yearoldscouldgivethepuppetviewpointcorrectlymorethan79%ofthetime.4-yearOld’sdidthis93%ofthetime.

• Shesuggestedthe‘threemountainstask’wastoohard,notbecausetheywereegocentric.


2018-19

Willingham

• UsedRepacholiandGopnik’s(1977)studytocriticisePiaget’sstagesofdevelopment.

• Inastudyofthe‘threemountainstask’theyfoundthatchildrenof18monthscouldshownon-egocentricbehaviour.

• Intheirstudy,childrentastedcrackers,whichtheyliked,andbroccoli,whichtheydidnotlike.Thentheysawtheexperimentershowdislikeofthecrackertasteandlikingofthebroccoli.Later,theexperimenterplacedabowlofcrackersandoneofbroccolionthetableandaskedthechildtopassoneofthebowls.

• The14-montholdpassedthefoodtheylikedthemselves,indicatingegocentrism.

• Childrenaged18months,passedthebroccolibecausethatiswhattheybelievedtheexperimenterliked;theycouldappreciatetheexperimenter’sview.


2018-19

LearningObjective:UnderstandtheeffectsoflearningondevelopmentusingCarolDweck’sMindsetTheory

• Mindset–Asetofbeliefssomeone'shasthatguideshowsomeonerespondstoorinterpretsasituation

• FixedMindset–Believingyourabilitiesarefixedandunchangeable• GrowthMindset–Believingpracticeandeffortcanimproveyourabilities• Ability–Whatsomeonecando.• Effort–Whenyoutryanddobetterusingdetermination

KeyPointsofDweck’sMindsettheory

• Childrencandevelopafixedmindsetaboutaparticularabilitytheythinktheydonothaveandgiveup,fearingtheywillnotbesuccessfulbecausetheabilityisnot‘inthem’.

• Theystoptakingonchallenges.Withafixedmindset,apersoncanbecomedepressedandstoptrying.

• Agrowthmindsetallowsfortheideaofeffortbringingsuccess.Challengesbecomeworthwhileandfeedbackistakennoticeof.

• Teachersalsohaveafixedorgrowthmindset,whichaffectshowtheyrespondtoachild.Ateacherwithafixedmindsetcanseechildrenaslackingaparticularability,whereasateacherwithagrowthmindsetseesthatachildcanimprovewithperseverance.


2018-19

EvaluationofCarolDweck’sGrowthmindset

Strengths

PracticalImplications

• AstrengthofDweck’stheoryisthatithaspracticalapplications.Teachersorparentscanfocusonpraisingeffort,ratherthanability,inordertoencouragechildren.Thetheoryitselfispositive–itshowsthatchangeispossible,whichhelpssociety.

YeagerandDweck(2012)Growthmindset=betterschoolperformance

• Furthermore,thereisevidencetosupportmindsettheory.Forexample,YeagerandDweck(2012)studyfoundthatadolescentscoulddealbetterwithnotfittinginiftheyhadagrowthmindset.Believing(orbeingtaught)thatpeoplecanchangeledtobetterschoolperformance.

Weaknesses

Artificial,asexperiments

• Manyofthestudiesthatlookintomindsethavebeenexperimentsandsohaveartificialsettings.Thisisaweaknessbecausetheresultsmaynothaverepresentedreallife.Thismeansthatthedatamaylackvalidity.OneexceptionisGundersonet.Al.(2013),whousedanaturalenvironmentwhengatheringtheirdataonparentpraise,givingthefindingsvalidity.

Toofocusedonchildnotonqualityofwhatisbeingtaught

• Studyingthemindsetofachildmayresultinthechildbecomingthefocusifthereareproblemswiththeirprogress,ratherthanthequalityofwhatisbeingtaughtandhowteachingisdone.Thiscanaffecttheusefulnessofthetheory.


2018-19

Ignoreeffectsofgivingfeedback

• Similarly,studiestestingmindsettheorytendtoignoretheeffectsofgivingfeedbackwithoutanyjudgmentaboutthechildortheirability,suchastellingachildto‘addaconclusion’toanessay.Thewaymanystudiesaredoneleadstothe‘typeofpraise’beingseenasanimportantvariable,butthereisaneedtoconsiderbehaviorwherepraisedoesnotfeature.


2018-19

LearningObjective:ToexplainWillingham’slearningtheory

• Short-termmemory:ourinitialmemorystorethatistemporaryandlimited.

• Rehearse:whenwerepeatinformationoverandoveragaintomakeitstick.

• Long-termmemory:amemorystorethatholdspotentiallylimitlessamountsofinformationforuptoalifetime.

• Motorskill:anactionthatinvolvesmusclesandbrainprocesses,resultinginmovement.

DanielWillinghamisacognitivescientistwhostudiesthinkingandbrainactivity.Hisworkcanbeappliedtotheclassroomandtoothersituations.Inhiswork,heexplainsnotonlyhisownideasbutalsoproblemswiththeideasofothers,includingPiagetandhis‘Threemountains’task.

• Canteachersincreasestudent’sself-control?• Doespracticemakeperfect?• Whatwillimproveastudent’smemory?

(somequestionsWillinghamasksontheeffectsoflearningondevelopment)

Thereare2mainconceptsthathesuggests

• FactualKnowledgecomesbeforeskill• Theimportanceofpracticeandeffort


2018-19

Factualknowledgecomesbeforeskill

• Knowledgefactshelpwhenbuildingtheskillsofproblem-solvingandreasoning.

• Anissuewithlearninganddevelopingskillsisthatpreviousknowledgeisneeded.

• Forexample,ifachildreads‘shehasmorelikesthanme’,theywouldneedpreviousknowledgeabouttheideaof‘likes’tounderstandwhatwasbeingsaid.

• Onceyouknowit,youcanfreespaceinyourworkingmemorytoallowustousementalskillssuchasproblemsolving.

• Willinghamsuggeststhatwhatsomeonealreadyknowsleavesthemmoreprocessingpowertosolveaproblemandaidsunderstanding.

• Forexample,factualknowledgeunderstandingthedistancebetween2countries.YoufirstneedtoknowwhereThailandisonthemap,thenyoucanunderstandhowfaritmaybefromQatar.

Theimportanceofpracticeandeffort

• Willinghamemphasisesthatpracticeandeffortenableustomasterknowledgeandskills.

• Itisimportanttopracticeenoughtobeabletodothingsautomatically.• Thisisnecessaryinordertoleaveenoughworkingmemoryforlearning

newthings.Practiceisnottheonlythingthat’simportant• askillmustberepeatedmanytimesandkeptup.

Importanceofbuildingknowledge

u WhenyoupracticesomethingitgoesintoyourShorttermmemory,ifyoucontinuouslyrehearseit,thentheinformationwillgotoyourlongtermmemorywhereitwillstayforlongerandrequirelessprocessing.

Importanceofbuildingskills

u Themorepracticeyoudo,themoreskillsyoudevelop,suchasproblemsolvingandcreativethinking.Onceyoudeveloptheseskills,theybecomeautomaticanduselessspaceinyourworkingmemory.


2018-19

LearningObjective-ToexplainWillingham’slearningtheoryandtheeffectsoflearningondevelopmentincludingunderstandingstrategiestosupport:

• Cognitive(memory)development• Physicaldevelopment• SocialDevelopment

Definitions

• Decentration:beingabletoseparateselffromtheworld,sonotbeingegocentric.Takingindifferentaspectsofonesituation.

• Sociallearning:atheorythatwelearnbyobservingandcopyingothers.Self-regulation:limitingandcontrollingyourselfwithoutinfluencefromothers.

• Nature:theideathathowwedevelopcomesfromourgenes.• Nurture:theideathathowwedevelopcomesfromourexperiencesand

environment.

CognitiveDevelopment

Hesuggestedthatteachersshould:

• useproblemsthatarenewandwithinastudent’sabilitybutthatalsorequiresomeeffort

• understandastudent’slikelystageofdevelopmentwhenplanningactivities

• rememberthatastudent’sabilitiesarevariableandcanchangefromdaytoday

• considerfactorsotherthandevelopmentallevel.Forexample,thestudentmightnotunderstandthetask.


2018-19

PhysicalDevelopment

Willinghamalsobelievedthatpracticeandeffortwouldimprovephysicaldevelopment,suchasmusclemovements(motorskills).Herelatedmusclemovementstobrainprocessing,suggestingthatinordertoimprovetheseskills,youshould:

• focusonwhatmovementswillbesuitableandinwhatordertheyneedtobecarriedout

• practicethemovementsinthatorderandenoughtimestomakethemusclecommandsautomatic(tobuildonaskillset)

• useconsciouseffort.Forexample,makechangesinordertodevelopthemotorskill,suchasraisingthebarwhendevelopingjumpingskills.SocialDevelopment

• Willingham’s focusonpractice,effortanddevelopmentgaverise to ideasthat teachers can use to help improve social development. Teachersshould:

• Willinghambelieved children can showegocentrismnearer to 18monthscomparedtoPiaget’sabout7yrs.

• Demonstrateappropriatesocialbehavior.Thechildwillusesociallearning,wherechildrenimitatethebehaviorofothersincertaincircumstances.

• Helpa child to stop impulsivebehaviour. Impulsivebehaviour isbehavingwithoutconsideringconsequencesandmainlywithoutthought.

• Encouragepracticewhichrequiresself-regulation.• Delaygivingarewardforatasktoencourageachildtokeepworkingatit,

whichrequiresthemtohaveself-control.


2018-19

EvaluationofWillingham’sLearningtheory

Strengths

Positiveapplicationtostudents

• Willingham’sworkcanbeappliedtoeducationandothersituationstopromoteachild’sdevelopmentinapositiveway.Thesepracticalapplicationsofthetheoryareoneofitsstrengths.

Supportingresearch

• RepacholiandAlisonGopnik’s(1997)studyprovidesexperimentalsupport,showingthatyoungchildrenwerenotasegocentricasPiagetthought.

• Experimentalevidenceisthereforeastrengthbecauseexperimentsarecarriedoutinacontrolledway;however,theymightnotreflectreality,sotheresultsmaylackvalidity

Weaknesses

Ignoresindividualdifferences

• OneweaknessisthatWillinghamdidnotreallyemphasisetheimportanceofindividualdifferencesforlearning,thoughsomefeaturesofhistheoryrelatetogenes.

• Forexample,hesuggestedthatself-regulationandimpulsivityare,tosomeextent,inherited.

Geneticinheritanceisdifficulttochange.

• Thoughthetheorygivesstrategiestohelpdevelopment,suchaschildrengettingemotionalandcognitivesupportfromtheirparents,whatisinsomeone’sgenescannotbechangedeasilyusingstrategies.


2018-19

StudyTwo

Gundersonetal.(2013)ParentPraiseto1-to3-Year-OldsPredictsChildren'sMotivationalFrameworks5YearsLater.

Aim(s)

Gundersonetal.investigatedtheuseofpraisebyparentsofchildrenaged14monthsto48monthsold.Theylookedatthecategoryofpraisethatparentsgavetheirchildrenandwhattypeofpraisewasmostused.Theyalsolookedatwhetherpersonpraiseorprocesspraisecanbeapredictorofmotivationalframeworksfiveyearslater.

Procedure

Sample:53childrenfromChicago(29boys,24girls)takenfromalargersampleof63familieswhohadbeentakingpartinastudyoflanguagedevelopment.ThesamplerepresentedthedemographicsofChicago(income,race,ethnicity).

Participants(childrenandparents)werevisitedathomeeveryfourmonthsfromwhenthechildwas14monthsoldaspartoftheoriginalstudy.Thismeantthatthedatagatheredwasdouble-blindasneitherthefamiliesnorresearcherortranscriberatthetimewereawarethattheirinteractionswouldlaterbestudiedforpraise.

Thevideorecordingsfromthelanguagestudylasted90minutes,andGundersonetal.usedtheinteractionsrecordedat14months,26monthsand38monthsold.Thespeechfromthevideorecordingwasalsotranscribedbytheoriginalresearchers.

Parentpraisewasmeasuredbycodingthetranscriptsoftheinteractions.Distinctionsweremadebetweenexplicitpraise(wordssuchas‘good’,‘nice’,‘great’)orimplicitpraise(byaffirmingactions‘yougotit’).ThesewerethencategorisedinoneofthreetypesofpraiseasshowninTable1.


2018-19

Thecodingwastestedforreliabilityon20%ofthetranscribedscripts,wherethecodingwasalsocompletedindependentlybyaminimumoftwofurthercoders.Therewasakappavalueof.81indicatinghighagreementbetweencoders,sointer-coderreliabilityisconsideredhigh.

Whenthechildrenreached7to8yearsold,theytookpartintwoverbalquestionnairesabouttheirmotivationalframework,whichwerecompleted3monthsapart.Eachofthesequestionnaireswaspartofalargercognitiveassessmentlasting2hours.

Thequestionnaireseachhadsimilarcontentandconsistedof11and13itemsrespectively.Theresultswerecombinedtogiveanoverallscoreforeachchild.Theyaimedtotestthedomainsofintelligence(18items)andsociomoralattributes(6items).ThesequestionnaireswereadaptedfromHeymanandDweck(1998).

Intelligencedomainitemsincluded5pointLikert-scaledquestionssuchas:

“Imagineakidwhothinksthatapersonisacertainamountofsmart,andtheystayprettymuchthesame.Howmuchdoyouagreewiththiskid?”

Sociomoraldomainitemsincludedyes/noquestionssuchas:“Imagineagirlwhogetsintroublealotatschool.Somepeoplethinkshewillkeepgettingintoalotoftroubleevenwhensheisinhighschool.Doyouthinkthisisright?”


2018-19

Parentsofthechildrenalsocompletedan8-itemquestionnairetotesthowmalleabletheyconsideredcognitiveabilitytobe.Itemsincludedquestionsaboutfixedintelligence,fixedmath’sabilityandothercognitiveskills.Thiswasalsoadministeredaspartofalargerquestionnaireassessingtheirbeliefsaboutacademicdevelopment.

Result(s)

Useofpraise

TheresultsofthecodingofpraiseutterancesareshowninTable2.Praisewasmeasuredcumulativelyusingallthreevisits.Themeanpercentagescoreforeachcategoryofpraiseisshownasapercentageofallutterancesbytheparent,andasapercentageofallpraisecommentsmadebytheparents.

Overall,praiseofanytypewas,onaverage,3%ofallutterancesbyparents.

Personpraiseasapercentageofallpraisewassignificantlylessat38monthsoldthanitwasat14monthsold,whereasprocesspraiseshowednosignificantchangeandotherpraisewassignificantlyhigherat38monthsoldthan14monthsold.

Boysreceivedmoreprocesspraisethangirls,andgirlsreceivedmorepersonandotherpraisethanboys.


2018-19

Motivationalframeworksdata

Averagesociomoralscorescorrelatedwithaverageintelligencescores.

Boysreportedmarginallymoreincrementalmotivationalframeworksthangirlsand,whenbrokendown,thiswassignificantlyhigherfortheintelligencedomainbutnotforthesociomoraldomain.

Therewerefewsignificantcorrelationsbetweenparentalscoresandthepraisetypeorfrequencytheyusedwiththechildren.However,ahigherscoreformalleablecognitivedevelopmentcorrelatedwithhigheruseofpersonpraise.

Relationshipsbetweenpraisestyleandmotivationalframeworks

Therewasasignificantcorrelationbetweenprocesspraise(asa%oftotalpraise)whenchildrenwere14monthsto38monthsoldandchildren’sincremental(malleable)motivationalframeworkscoresat7to8yearsold.

Therewasnosignificantcorrelationbetweenpersonpraiseandchildren’sentity(fixedability)motivationalframeworkscoresat7to8yearsold.

Conclusions

Theamountofprocesspraise(effortofthechild)thatparentsgavetheirchildrenbetween14and38monthsoldwasapredictorofchildren’sincremental(cognitivetraitsaremalleable;effortisimportant)motivationalframeworksat7to8yearsold.

Childrenwhoseparentsusedmoreprocesspraiseweremorelikelytohavebeliefsandbehavioursassociatedwithanincrementalmotivationalframework,measuredinthesociomoralandintelligencedomains.


2018-19

Gundersonetal.alsofoundagenderdifferenceinthetypesofpraisechildrenreceived.Boysreceivedsignificantlymoreprocesspraisethangirls,eventhough,overall,boysandgirlsreceivedthesameamountofpraise.Thiscouldexplainwhyexistingresearchhighlightsthatgirlstendtoattributefailurestolackofabilityandshowdecreasedpersistenceandmotivationafterfailure.

Finally,parentswithstrongerincrementaltheoriesweremorelikelytogivepersonpraise.Thiscouldbeexplainedasparentswhobelievethatintelligenceismalleablebelievethatthewaytomaketheirchildsmarteristoincreasethechild’sself-esteembysayinghowsmarttheyareusingpersonpraise.

EvaluationofGundersonetal(2013)Study

Strengths

Naturalenvironment

• Gundersonetal(2013)representedthenaturalenvironmentbyrecordingtypesofpraiseinthechild’shomewhiletheywentabouttheirtypicalday.

• Findingsfromthetwodifferentmethods-experimentandobservation–givesthestudymorevalidity.

Researcherbiasnotpresent

• Anotherstrengthisthattheresearcherwhovideotapedandtranscribedthedatadidnotknowthatparentalpraisewasthepointofinterest.Thishelpedtoavoidthebiasinthegatheringofthequalitativedata.

• Ifsomeoneknowswhytheyarebeingwatched,andifthepersonwatchingalsoknowswhatoutcomeisexpected,thatknowledgecanaffectthedatagathered.


2018-19

Weaknesses

Deception

• Theethicsofthestudycouldbecriticized,andthisisaweakness.Theparticipantsweredeceived.Theyweretoldthestudywasaboutchilddevelopment,butintruthitwasabouttypesofpraiseandtheeffectsthishasonachild.Forethicalreasons,theremustbeaslittledeceitaspossibleinastudy.Iftherewasadebriefthismaybeseenasethicallyacceptable.

Observationcanchangebehavior

• Anotherweaknessisthattheparentsmayhavechangedtheirstyleofpraisebecausetheywerebeingobserved,eventhoughtheydidnotknowwhataspectoftheirbehaviorwasbeingobserved.Thedata,therefore,mightnotbenatural,andsomaylackvalidity.

Generalisability

• Forthisstudy,only53parent/childpairsinChicagowereused.Thissamplemaynotberepresentativeofawiderpopulation,whichlimitsthegeneralisabilityofthefindings.Thisisafurtherweaknessofthestudy.

Learningcheck!

• Whyisbeinginanaturalenvironmentastrengthofthestudy?• Whatdoesresearchersbiasmean?• Whyisresearcherbiasastrengthofthestudy?• Whyisdeceptionaweakness?• Whycanobservationchangebehavior?• Wastheexperimentgeneralisable?Whynot?


2018-19

LearningObjective:Understandmoralityissuesinpsychologyandtheindividual,includingtheterms‘morality’and‘moral(s)’

• Morals–Standardsofrightandwrongbehaviourthatcandifferbetweenculturesandcandependonthesituation.

• Moraldevelopment–Children’sgrowingunderstandingaboutrightandwrong

• Heteronomous–rulesputintoplacebyothers(e.g.parents,teachers)• Autonomous–Rulescanbedecidedbytheindividualperson

Piaget’s(1932)TheoryofMoralDevelopment

• Fromaboutage5-10years,achildbelievesrulescannotbechanged.• Theirideasofmoralitycomefromothersaroundthem,suchasparentsand

teachers.Atthisstage,theytendtofocusonanaction’sconsequences.E.g.breakingrulesleadstopunishment.Thisstageisheteronomous(directedbyothers).

• Fromabout10yearsold,achildknowsthattheintentionsoftheactionareimportant.Anactionwithbadconsequencecanbeagoodactioniftheintentionwasgood.E.g.jumpinginthepoolfullyclothedwhentheyseeanotherchilddrowning,evenwhentheywereaskednottogobackinside.

• Moralsareseenasagreedbetweenpeopleandthechildknowsthatfollowingrulesismoreabouttheconsequenceofnotfollowingthem(punishment).Thisstageisautonomous(theindividualdecides)

Issuesanddebates


2018-19

KolbergTheoryofMoralDevelopment

A01

• Moralsrefertowhatisrightandwronginhumanbehavior.Somethingthatismoraliswhatmostpeopleagreeisrightandgood.

• Moralityrefersto‘properbehaviour’.Peopleshouldbehaveaccordingtoprinciplesofwhatisrightandwrong.Moralitymeansseparatinggoodbehaviourfrombadbehaviour.

• Moraldevelopmentreferstohowchildrenreasonaboutwhatisrightandwrong,andhowtheymakemoraldecisions.

• Piagetsuggeststhatmoralunderstandingdevelops,aswithcognitivedevelopment,throughstages.

• Kolbergsuggeststhatthereare3levelsofmoralreasoning,pre-conventional,conventionalandpost-conventional

****Which3A01marksyouwillusedependonthequestion***

A03

• BothPiagetandKohlbergusedstoriesthatwereartificialandmightnotrepresentrealthinking

• Boththeoriesalsolackecologicalvalidity.Therewerenorealconsequencesinthestoriesfromthedecisionsthatweremade.

• CarolGilligan(1977)criticisedKohlberg,sayinghismale-onlysamplemeanthistheorywasaboutmalemorality.

developmental psychology revision...

Documents