Child Growth and Development Chapter 5 Cognitive Development in Infancy and Toddlerhood

Chapter Cognitive Development in Infancy and Objectives After this chapter , you should be able to . Describe the of the sensorimotor stage . Explain how the social environment affects cognitive development according to theory . Discuss the progression of language development during the first two years . Compare the theories of language development . Define classical and operant conditioning . Summarize the different types of memory 57 Introduction In an effort to better understand the large spectrum of cognition that infants and toddlers go through , it is important to analyze and comprehend various theories that relate to their growth and development . This chapter will take a look at the following theorists , Skinner , Watson , and . Jean is the most noted theorist when it comes to children cognitive development . He believed that children cognition develops in stages . He explained this growth in the following stages . Sensory Motor Stage ( Birth through years old ) Stage ( years old ) Concrete Operational Stage ( years old ) Formal Operational Stage ( 12 years adulthood ) In this cognitive chapter we will focus on his first stage which occurs in infancy describes intelligence in infancy as sensorimotor or based on direct , physical contact . Infants taste , feel , pound , push , hear , and move in order to experience the world . Let explore the transition infants make from responding to the external world reflexively as newborns to solving problems using mental strategies as two years old . Children Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY Growth and Development

Table of Sensorimotor Substage Age Description . Th ' I ' Substage one Birth to IS ac ive earning wi au or re exes , A ball comes into contact with an infant cheek and is Simple Reflexes month . automatically sucked on and licked . The infant begins to discriminate between objects and adjust responses accordingly as reflexes are replaced with voluntary Substage Two movements . An infant may accidentally engage in a behavior and , to find it interesting such as making a vocalization . This interest Primary Circular . months motivates trying to do it again and helps the infant learn a new Reactions . behavior that originally occurred by chance . At first , most actions have to do with the body , but in months to come , will be directed more toward objects . The infant becomes more and more actively engaged in the outside Substage Three to world and takes delight in being able to make things happen . Secondary Circular months Repeated motion brings particular interest as the infant is able to Reactions bang two lids together from the cupboard when seated on the kitchen floor . The infant can engage in behaviors that others perform and anticipate upcoming events . Perhaps because of continued Substage Four to 12 maturation of the prefrontal cortex , the infant becomes capable of Coordination of having a thought and carrying out a planned , activity , months . circular reactions such as seeking a toy that has rolled under the couch . The object continues to exist in the infant mind even when out of sight and the infant now is capable of making attempts to retrieve it . The infant more actively engages in experimentation to learn about ' Substage Five wor ravi IS pouring wa er a cup . 12 to 18 or pushing bowls from high chairs . The caregiver tries to help the Tertiary Circular . months child by picking it up again and placing it on the tray . And what Reactions . happens ?

Another experiment ! The child pushes it off the tray again causing it to fall and the caregiver to pick it up again ! The child is now able to solve problems using mental strategies , to remember something heard days before and repeat it , to engage in pretend play , and to find objects that have been moved even when Substage Six 18 out of sight . Take for instance , the child who is upstairs in a room of with the door closed , supposedly taking a nap . The doorknob has a months . Schemes and Early to safety device on it that makes it impossible for the child to turn the Representational ears knob . After trying several times in vain to push the door or turn the thought doorknob , the child carries out a mental strategy learned from prior experience to get the door knocks on the door ! The child is now better equipped with mental strategies for solving . Children Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY Growth and Development

Figure An infant sitting in a Evaluating Sensorimotor Stage opened up a new way of looking at infants with his view that their main task is to coordinate their sensory impressions with their motor activity . However , the infant cognitive world is not as neatly packaged as portrayed it , and some of explanations for the cause of change are debated . In the past several decades , sophisticated experimental techniques have been devised to study infants , and there have been a large number of research studies on infant development . Much of the new research suggests that view of sensorimotor development needs to be modified ( 2014 Brooks , 2014 Johnson , 2015 ) Object Permanence One necessary modification would be to when children develop object permanence . Infants seem to be able to recognize that objects have permanence at much younger ages than proposed ( even as young as months of age ) The Error The data does not always support claim that certain processes are crucial in transitions from one stage to the next . For example , in theory , an important feature in the progression into substage , coordination of secondary circular reactions , is an inclination to search for a hidden object in a familiar location rather than to look for the object in a new location . Thus , if a toy is hidden twice , initially at location A and subsequently at location , to infants search correctly at location A initially . But when the toy is subsequently hidden at location , they make the mistake of continuing to search for it at location error is the term used to describe this common mistake . Older infants are less likely to make the error because their concept of object permanence is more complete . Image by is licensed under Growth and Development

Researchers have found , however , that the error does not show up consistently ( 1985 ) The evidence indicates that errors are sensitive to the delay between hiding the object at and the infant attempt to find it ( Diamond , 1985 ) Thus , the error might be due to a failure in memory . Another explanation is that infants tend to repeat a previous motor behavior ( others , 2006 Smith , 1999 ) Development Is Determined By Environmental Factors set the tone for much of research but his theory has also received a great deal of criticism . Many believe that ignored the huge influence that society and culture have in shaping a child development . At a similar time , another researcher named Lev ( had come to similar conclusions as about children development , in thinking that children learned about the world through physical interaction with it . However , where felt that children moved naturally through different stages of development , based on biological predispositions and their own individual interactions with the world , claimed that adult or peer intervention was a much more important part ofthe developmental process . concentrated more on the child immediate social and cultural environment and his or her interactions with adults and peers . He argued that development occurred first through children immediate social interactions , and then moved to the individual level as they began to internalize their learning . While saw the child as actively discovering the world through individual interactions with it , saw the child as more of an apprentice , learning through a social environment of others who had more experience and were sensitive to the child needs and Children Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY Image by on Growth and Development

Cognitive Milestones Children are actively learning about the world as they perceive it from the time they are in the womb . Here is a table of some of the cognitive milestones infants and toddlers typically develop . Table Cognitive Typical Age What Most Children Do by This Age Pays attention to faces Begins to follow things with eyes and recognize people at a distance Begins to act bored ( cries , fussy ) if activity does change Lets you know if she is happy or sad Responds to affection Reaches for toy with one hand months Uses hands and eyes together , such as seeing a toy and reaching for it Follows moving things with eyes from side to side Watches faces closely Recognizes familiar people and things at a distance Looks around at things nearby Brings things to mouth Shows curiosity about things and tries to get things that are out of reach Begins to pass things from one hand to the other months Watches the path of something as it falls Looks for things he sees you hide months Plays Puts things in mouth Moves things smoothly from one hand to the other Picks up things like cereal between thumb and index finger Developmental Milestones by the is in the public domain Growth and Development

Typical Age What Most Children Do by This Age Explores things in different ways , like shaking , banging , throwing Finds hidden things easily Looks at the right picture or thing when it named Copies gestures Starts to use things correctly for example , drinks from a cup , brushes hair Bangs two things together Puts things in a container , takes things out of a container Lets things go without help Pokes with index ( pointer ) finger Follows simple directions like pick up the toy year Knows what ordinary things are for for example , telephone , brush , spoon Points to get the attention of others 13 months Shows interest in a doll or stuffed animal by pretending to feed Points to one body part Scribbles on own Can follow verbal commands without any gestures for example , sits when you say sit down Finds things even when hidden under two or three covers Begins to sort shapes and colors Completes sentences and rhymes in familiar books Plays simple games Builds towers of or more blocks Might use one hand more than the other Follows instructions such as Pick up your shoes and put them in the years Names items in a picture book such as a cat , bird , or dog Language Development Do newborns communicate ?

Absolutely ! However , they do not communicate with the use of language . Instead , they communicate their thoughts and needs with body posture ( being relaxed or still ) gestures , cries , and facial expressions . A person who spends adequate time with an infant can learn which cries indicate pain and which ones indicate hunger , discomfort , or frustration as well as translate their vocalizations , movements , gestures and facial expressions . Growth and Development

Figure . An in Stages of Language Development . Intentional Cooing and taking turns Infants begin to vocalize and repeat vocalizations within the first couple of months of life . That gurgling , musical vocalization called cooing can serve as a source of entertainment to an infant who has been laid down for a nap or seated in a carrier on a car ride . Cooing serves as practice for vocalization as well as the infant hears the sound of his or her own voice and tries to repeat sounds that are entertaining . Infants also begin to learn the pace and pause of conversation as they alternate their vocalization with that of someone else and then take their turn again when the other person vocalization has stopped . Cooing initially involves making vowel sounds like oooo . Later , consonants are added to vocalizations such as . Babbling and gesturing At about four to six months of age , infants begin making even more elaborate vocalizations that include the sounds required for any language . Guttural sounds , clicks , consonants , and vowel sounds stand ready to equip the child with the ability to repeat whatever sounds are characteristic of the language heard . Eventually , these sounds will no longer be used as the infant grows more accustomed to a particular language . Deaf babies also use gestures to communicate wants , reactions , and feelings . Because gesturing seems to be easier than vocalization for some toddlers , sign language is sometimes taught to enhance one ability to communicate by making use ofthe ease of gesturing . The rhythm and pattern of language is used when deaf babies sign just as it is when hearing babies babble . Understanding At around ten months of age , the infant can understand more than he or she can say . You may have experienced this phenomenon as well if you have ever tried to learn a second language . You may have been able to follow a conversation more easily than to contribute to it . Image by Andres and Antoinette Ricardo used with permission Growth and Development

. Holophrastic speech Children begin using their first words at about 12 or 13 months of age and may use partial words to convey thoughts at even younger ages . These one word expressions are referred to as holophrastic speech . For example , the child may say ju for the word juice and use this sound when referring to a bottle . The listener must interpret the meaning of the holophrase and when this is someone who has spent time with the child , interpretation is not too difficult . They know that ju means juice which means the baby wants some milk ! But , someone who has not been around the child will have trouble knowing what is meant . Imagine the parent who to a friend exclaims , Ezra talking all the time now ! The friend hears only ju da ga which , the parent explains , means I want some milk when I go with I Figure Two children playing with . A child who learns that a word stands for an object may initially think that the word can be used for only that particular object . Only the family Irish Setter is a doggie . This is referred to as . More often , however , a child may think that a label applies to all objects that are similar to the original object . In overextension all animals become doggies , for example . First words and cultural influences First words if the child is using English tend to be nouns . The child labels objects such as cup or ball . In a language such as Chinese , however , children may learn more verbs . This may also be due to the different emphasis given to objects based on culture . Chinese children may be taught to notice action and relationship between objects while children from the United States may be taught to name an object and its qualities ( color , texture , size , These differences can be seen when comparing interpretations of art by older students from China and the United States . Vocabulary growth spurt One year olds typically have a vocabulary of about 50 words . But by the time they become toddlers , they have a vocabulary of about 200 words and begin putting those words together in telegraphic speech ( I think of it now as Image by the Air Force is in the public domain Growth and Development

message speech because texting is more common and is similar in that text messages typically only include the minimal amount of words to convey the message ) Two word sentences and telegraphic speech Words are soon combined and 18 month old toddlers can express themselves further by using expressions such as baby bye or doggie pretty . Words needed to convey messages are used , but the articles and other parts of speech necessary for grammatical correctness are not yet used . These expressions sound like a telegraph ( or perhaps a better analogy today would be that they read like a text message ) where unnecessary words are not used . Give baby ball is used rather than Give the baby the Or a text message of Send money now ! rather than Dear Mother . I really need some money to take care of my Figure toddler playing with a toy Language Milestones In the first two years of life , children go from communicating by crying to being able to express themselves with words . Here is a table of common language milestones for infants and toddlers . Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY Image by Salim Vir i is licensed under Growth and Development

Table Language Milestones Typical Age What Most Children Do By This Age months Coos , makes gurgling sounds Turns head toward sounds months Begins to babble Babbles with expression and copies sounds he hears Cries in different ways to show hunger , pain , or being tired months Responds to sounds by making sounds Strings vowels together when babbling ( ah , eh , oh ) and likes taking turns with parent while making sounds Responds to own name Makes sounds to show joy and displeasure Begins to say consonant sounds ( jabbering with , months Understands no Makes a lot of different sounds like and Copies sounds and gestures of others Uses fingers to point at things year Responds to simple spoken requests Uses simple gestures , like shaking head no or waving Makes sounds with changes in tone ( sounds more like speech ) Says mama and dada and exclamations like ! Tries to say words you say 18 months Says several single words Says and shakes head now Points to show others what is wanted years Points to things or pictures when they are named Knows names of familiar people and body parts Says sentences with to words Follows simple instructions Repeats words overheard in conversation Points to things in a book Why is a horse a horsie ?

Have you ever wondered why adults tend to use baby talk or that type of intonation and exaggeration used when talking to children ?

This represents a universal tendency and is known as speech or parentheses ( historically referred 11 Developmental Milestones by the is in the public domain Growth and Development to as ) It involves exaggerating the vowel and consonant sounds , using a pitched voice , and delivering the phrase with great facial expression . Why is this done ?

It may be in order to clearly articulate the sounds of a word so that the child can hear the sounds involved . Or it may be because when this type of speech is used , the infant pays more attention to the speaker and this sets up a pattern of interaction in which the speaker and listener are in tuned with one The following two theories of language development represent two extremes in the level of interaction required for language to occur ( Berk , 2007 ) and the Language Acquisition Device The view known as nativism advocated by suggests that infants are equipped with a neurological construct referred to as the language acquisition device or LAD that makes infants ready for language . Language develops as long as the infant is exposed to it . No teaching , training , or reinforcement is required for language to develop . Social Pragmatics Another view emphasizes the child active engagement in learning language out of a need to communicate . The child seeks information , memorizes terms , imitates the speech heard from others and learns to conceptualize using words as language is acquired . Many would argue that all three ofthese dynamics foster the acquisition of language ( Berger , 2004 ) Theories of Cognitive Development , Learning , and Memory Ivan ( was a Russian physiologist interested in studying digestion . As he recorded the amount of salivation his laboratory dogs produced as they ate , he noticed that they actually began to salivate before the food arrived as the researcher walked down the hall and toward the cage . The dogs knew that the food was coming because they had learned to associate the footsteps with the food . The key word here is learned . A learned response is called a conditioned response . began to experiment with this psychic reflex . He began to ring a bell , for instance , prior to introducing the food . Sure enough , after making this connection several times , the dogs could be made to salivate to the sound of a bell . Once the bell had become an event to which the dogs had learned to salivate , it was called a conditioned stimulus . The act of salivating to a bell was a response that had also been learned , now termed in , a conditioned response . 12 Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY 13 Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY Growth and Development

Notice that the response , salivation , is the same whether it is conditioned or unconditioned ( unlearned or natural ) What changed is the stimulus to which the dog . One is natural ( unconditioned ) and one is learned ( conditioned ) Figure experiments with dogs and Let think about how classical conditioning is used on us . One of the most widespread applications of classical conditioning principles was brought to us by the psychologist , John Watson . Classical conditioning is a form of learning whereby a conditioned stimulus ( becomes associated with an unrelated unconditioned stimulus ( US ) in order to produce a behavioral response known as a conditioned response ( The conditioned response is the learned response to the previously neutral stimulus . The unconditioned stimulus is usually a biologically significant stimulus such as food or pain that elicits an unconditioned response ( UR ) from the start . The conditioned stimulus is usually neutral and produces no particular response at first , but after conditioning it elicits the conditioned response . If we look at experiment , we can identify these four factors at work The unconditioned response was the salivation of dogs in response to seeing or smelling their food . The unconditioned stimulus was the sight or smell of the food itself . The conditioned stimulus was the ringing of the bell . During conditioning , every time the animal was given food , the bell was rung . This was repeated during several trials . After some time , the dog learned to associate the ringing of the bell with food and to respond by salivating . After the conditioning period was finished , the dog would respond by Image by is licensed under 15 Lifespan Development Module Infancy by Lumen Learning references 200 Lifespan Psychology by Laura , licensed under BY Growth and Development

salivating when the bell was rung , even when the unconditioned stimulus ( the food ) was absent . The conditioned response , therefore , was the salivation of the dogs in response to the conditioned stimulus ( the ringing of the bell ) Neurological Response to Conditioning Consider how the conditioned response occurs in the brain . When a dog sees food , the visual and olfactory stimuli send information to the brain through their respective neural pathways , ultimately activating the salivary glands to secrete saliva . This reaction is a natural biological process as saliva aids in the digestion of food . When a dog hears a buzzer and at the same time sees food , the auditory stimuli activates the associated neural pathways . However , since these pathways are being activated at the same time as the other neural pathways , there are weak synapse reactions that occur between the auditory stimuli and the behavioral response . Over time , these synapses are strengthened so that it only takes the sound of a buzzer to activate the pathway leading to salivation . Operant conditioning is a theory of behaviorism , a learning perspective that focuses on changes in an individual observable behaviors . In operant conditioning theory , new or continued behaviors are impacted by new or continued consequences . Research regarding this principle of learning was first studied by Edward in the late 1800 , then brought to popularity by Skinner in the . Much of this research informs current practices in human behavior and interaction . Skinner Research initial research was highly influential on another psychologist , Skinner . Almost half a century after first publication of the principles of operant conditioning , Skinner attempted to prove an extension to this all behaviors were in some way a result of operant conditioning . Skinner theorized that if a behavior is followed by reinforcement , that behavior is more likely to be repeated , but if it is followed by punishment , it is less likely to be repeated . He also believed that this learned association could end , or become extinct , if the reinforcement or punishment was removed . To prove this , he placed rats in a box with a lever that when tapped would release a pellet of food . Over time , the amount of time it took for the rat to find the lever and press it became shorter and shorter , until finally the rat would spend most of its time near the lever eating . This behavior became less consistent when the relationship between the lever and the food was compromised . This basic theory of operant conditioning is still used by psychologists , scientists , and educators today . Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY Growth and Development

Shaping , Reinforcement Principles , and Schedules of Reinforcement Operant conditioning can be viewed as a process of action and consequence . Skinner used this basic principle to study the possible scope and scale of the influence of operant conditioning on animal behavior . His experiments used shaping , reinforcement , and reinforcement schedules in order to prove the importance of the relationship that animals form between behaviors and results . All of these practices concern the setup of an experiment . Shaping is the conditioning paradigm of an experiment . The form of the experiment in successive trials is gradually changed to elicit a desired target behavior . This is accomplished through reinforcement , or reward , of the segments ofthe target behavior , and can be tested using a large variety of actions and rewards . The experiments were taken a step further to include different schedules of reinforcement that become more complicated as the trials continued . By testing different reinforcement schedules , Skinner learned valuable information about the best ways to encourage a specific behavior , or the most effective ways to create a behavior . Much of this research has been replicated on humans , and now informs practices in various environments of human behavior . Positive and Negative Reinforcement Sometimes , adding something to the situation is reinforcing as in the cases we described above with cookies , praise and money . Positive reinforcement involves adding something to the situation in order to encourage a behavior . Other times , taking something away from a situation can be reinforcing . For example , the loud , annoying buzzer on your alarm clock encourages you to get up so that you can turn it off and get rid ofthe noise . Children whine in order to get their parents to do something and often , parents give in just to stop the whining . In these instances , negative reinforcement has been used . Operant Conditioning Reinforcement Punishment Increase Behavior Decrease Behavior Positive Negative Positive Negative Add appetitive stimulus Remove or avoid Add noxious stimuli Remove appetitive stimulus following correct behavior noxious stimuli following behavior following behavior Giving a treat when the dog sits the alarm clock off scalding a child for not Turning the alarm clock off Figure Reinforcement in operant conditioning 17 by Ana Leon is licensed under BY 18 Image by Curtis is licensed under ( Modified from source image ) Growth and Development

Operant conditioning tends to work best if you focus on trying to encourage a behavior or move a person into the direction you want them to go rather than telling them what not to do . are used to encourage a behavior are used to stop behavior . A punisher is anything that follows an act and decreases the chance it will reoccur . But often a punished behavior does really go away . It is just suppressed and may reoccur whenever the threat of punishment is removed . For example , a child may not cuss around you because you washed his mouth out with soap , but he may cuss around his friends . Or a motorist may only slow down when the trooper is on the side of the freeway . Another problem with punishment is that when a person focuses on punishment , they may find it hard to see what the other does right or well . And punishment is when punished , some start to see themselves as bad and give up trying to change . Reinforcement can occur in a predictable way , such as after every desired action is performed , or intermittently , after the behavior is performed a number of times or the first time it is performed after a certain amount of time . The schedule of reinforcement has an impact on how long a behavior continues after reinforcement is discontinued . So a parent who has rewarded a child actions each time may find that the child gives up very quickly if a reward is not immediately forthcoming . Think about the kinds of behaviors that may be learned through classical and operant conditioning . But sometimes very complex behaviors are learned quickly and without direct reinforcement . Social Learning covered later in the chapter explains how . Another theorist who added to the spectrum of the behavioral movement was John Watson . Watson believed that most of our fears and other emotional responses are classically conditioned . He had gained a good deal of popularity in the with his expert advice on parenting offered to the public . He believed that parents could be taught to help shape their children behavior and tried to demonstrate the power of classical conditioning with his famous experiment with an 18 month old boy named Little Albert . Watson sat Albert down and introduced a variety of seemingly scary objects to him a burning piece of newspaper , a white rat , etc . But Albert remained curious and reached for all ofthese things . Watson knew that one of our only inborn fears is the fear of loud noises so he proceeded to make a loud noise each time he introduced one of Albert favorites , a white rat . After hearing the loud noise several times paired with the rat , Albert soon came to fear the rat and began to cry when it was introduced . Watson filmed this experiment for posterity and used it to demonstrate that he could help parents achieve any outcomes they desired , if they would only follow his advice . Watson wrote columns in newspapers and in magazines and gained a lot of popularity among parents eager to apply science to household order . Parenting advice was not the legacy Watson left us , however . Where he really made his impact was in advertising . After Watson left academia , he went into 19 Lifespan Development Module Infancy by Lumen Learning references 200 Lifespan Psychology by Laura , licensed under BY Growth and Development

the world of business and showed companies how to tie something that brings about a natural positive feeling to their products to enhance sales . Thus the union of sex and advertising ! Sometimes we do things because we seen it pay off for someone else . They were conditioned , but we engage in the behavior because we hope it will pay off for us as well . This is referred to as vicarious reinforcement ( Ross and Ross , 1963 ) Do parents socialize children or do children socialize parents ?

1986 ) suggests that there is interplay between the environment and the individual . We are not just the product of our surroundings , rather we influence our surroundings . There is interplay between our personality and the way we interpret events and how they influence us . This concept is called reciprocal determinism . An example of this might be the interplay between parents and children . Parents not only influence their child environment , perhaps intentionally through the use of reinforcement , but children influence parents as well . Parents may respond differently with their first child than with their fourth . Perhaps they try to be the perfect parents with their firstborn , but by the time their last child comes along they have very different expectations both of themselves and their child . Our environment creates us and we create our environment . 20 Lifespan Development Module Infancy by Lumen Learning references 200 Lifespan Psychology by Laura , licensed under BY 21 Image is in the public domain Growth and Development

' Figure smiling infant playing with Albert is a leading contributor to social learning theory . He calls our attention to the ways in which many of our actions are not learned through conditioning rather , they are learned by watching others ( 1977 ) Young children frequently learn behaviors through imitation . Sometimes , particularly when we do not know what else to do , we learn by modeling or copying the behavior of others . A new employee , on his or her first day of a new job might eagerly look at how others are acting and try to act the same way to fit in more quickly . Adolescents struggling with their identity rely heavily on their peers to act as . Newly married couples often rely on roles they may have learned from their parents and begin to act in ways they did not while dating and then wonder why their relationship has changed . Memory and Attention If we want to remember something tomorrow , we have to consolidate it into memory today . memory is the final , stage of memory . Unlike sensory and memory , memory has a theoretically infinite capacity , and information can remain there indefinitely . memory has also been called reference memory , because an individual must refer to the information in memory when performing almost any task . memory can be broken down into two categories explicit and implicit memory . Explicit memory , also known as conscious or declarative memory , involves memory of facts , concepts , and events that require conscious recall ofthe information . In other words , the individual must actively think about retrieving the information from memory . This type of information is explicitly stored and its name . Explicit memory can be further 22 Image by on Growth and Development

subdivided into semantic memory , which concerns facts , and episodic memory , which concerns primarily personal or autobiographical information . Episodic memory is used for more memories . They are generally memories of specific moments , or episodes , in one life . As such , they include sensations and emotions associated with the event , in addition to the who , what , where , and when of what happened . An example of an episodic memory would be recalling your family trip to the beach . Autobiographical memory ( memory for particular events in one own life ) is generally viewed as either equivalent to , or a subset of , episodic memory . One specific type of autobiographical memory is a flashbulb memory , which is a highly detailed , exceptionally vivid snapshot of the moment and circumstances in which a piece of surprising and consequential ( or emotionally arousing ) news was heard . For example , many people remember exactly where they were and what they were doing when they heard of the terrorist attacks on September 11 , 2001 . This is because it is a flashbulb memory . Semantic and episodic memory are closely related memory for facts can be enhanced with episodic memories associated with the fact , and vice versa . For example , the answer to the factual question Are all apples red ?

might be recalled by remembering the time you saw someone eating a green apple . Likewise , semantic memories about certain topics , such as football , can contribute to more detailed episodic memories of a particular personal event , like watching a football game . A person that barely knows the rules of football will remember the various plays and outcomes of the game in much less detail than a football expert . In contrast to explicit ( conscious ) memory , implicit ( also called unconscious or procedural ) memory involves procedures for completing actions . These actions develop with practice over time . Athletic skills are one example of implicit memory . You learn the fundamentals of a sport , practice them over and over , and then they flow naturally during a game . Rehearsing for a dance or musical performance is another example of implicit memory . Everyday examples include remembering how to tie your shoes , drive a car , or ride a bicycle . These memories are accessed without conscious are automatically translated into actions without us even realizing it . As such , they can often be difficult to teach or explain to other people . Implicit memories differ from the semantic scripts described above in that they are usually actions that involve movement and motor coordination , whereas scripts tend to emphasize social norms or behaviors . Growth and Development

Figure A toddler Memory Storage memory is the ability to hold information for a short duration of time ( on the order of seconds ) In the process of encoding , information enters the brain and can be quickly forgotten if it is not stored further in the memory . George Miller suggested that the capacity of memory storage is approximately seven items plus or minus two , but modern researchers are showing that this can vary depending on variables like the stored items phonological properties . When several elements ( such as digits , words , or pictures ) are held in memory simultaneously , their representations compete with each other for recall , or degrade each other . Thereby , new content gradually pushes out older content , unless the older content is actively protected against interference by rehearsal or by directing attention to it . Information in the memory is readily accessible , but for only a short time . It continuously decays , so in the absence of rehearsal ( keeping information in memory by mentally repeating it ) it can be forgotten . Consolidation Longterm Memory Memory Rehearsal Figure Diagram of the memory storage 23 Image on Public Domain Pictures Image by Wikipedia is licensed under Growth and Development

In contrast to memory , memory is the ability to hold semantic information for a prolonged period of time . Items stored in memory move to term memory through rehearsal , processing , and use . The capacity of memory storage is much greater than that of memory , and perhaps unlimited . However , the duration of memories is not permanent unless a memory is occasionally recalled , it may fail to be recalled on later occasions . This is known as forgetting . memory storage can be affected by traumatic brain injury or lesions . Amnesia , a deficit in memory , can be caused by brain damage . Anterograde amnesia is the inability to store new memories retrograde amnesia is the inability to retrieve old memories . These types of amnesia indicate that memory does have a storage process . Conclusion In this chapter we looked at sensorimotor stage . The impact of the social environment on children learning . The progression and theories of language development . Classical and operant conditioning and systems of reinforcement . The types of memory and how they work together . In the following chapter , we will finish looking at the first two years of life by examining social and emotional development , including temperament and attachment . 25 Development by Ana Leon is licensed under BY Growth and Development