Stages of development

Stages of development

1. Piaget says that cognitive development implies changes in the cognitive process and skills

2. Sensorimotor stage: birth to 2 years

   • The infant knows the world through their movements and sensations
   • Children learn about the world through basic actions such as sucking, grasping, looking, and listening
   • Infants learn that things continue to exist even though they cannot be seen
   • They are separate beings from the people and objects around them
   • They realize that their actions can cause things to happen in the world around them

3. Preoperational stage: ages 2 to 7

   • Children begin to think symbolically and learn to use words and pictures to represent objects.
   • Children at this stage tend to be egocentric and struggle to see things from the perspective of others.
   • While they are getting better with language and thinking, they still tend to think about things in very concrete terms.

4. Concrete operational stage: ages 7 to 11

   • During this stage, children begin to thinking logically about concrete events
   • They begin to understand the concept of conservation; that the amount of liquid in a short, wide cup is equal to that in a tall, skinny glass, for example
   • Their thinking becomes more logical and organized, but still very concrete
   • Children begin using inductive logic, or reasoning from specific information to a general principle

5. Formal operational stage: ages 12 and up

   • At this stage, the adolescent or young adult begins to think abstractly and reason about hypothetical problems
   • Teens begin to think more about moral, philosophical, ethical, social, and political issues that require theoretical and abstract reasoning
   • Abstract thought emerges
   • Begin to use deductive logic, or reasoning from a general principle to specific information