Search research articles

ABOUT JoVE

Overview Leadership Blog JoVE Help Center

AUTHORS

Publishing Process Editorial Board Scope & Policies Peer Review FAQ Submit

LIBRARIANS

Testimonials Subscriptions Access Resources Library Advisory Board FAQ

RESEARCH

JoVE Journal Methods Collections JoVE Encyclopedia of Experiments Archive

EDUCATION

JoVE Core JoVE Business JoVE Science Education JoVE Lab Manual Faculty Resource Center Faculty Site

Terms & Conditions of Use

Related Concept Videos

Cognitive Development During Adolescence

Cognitive Development During Adolescence

During adolescence, individuals experience significant cognitive development that enhances their understanding of others' emotions and thoughts, known as cognitive empathy. This period is marked by an increased ability to adapt to others' perspectives and a more nuanced understanding of others' mental states, a skill that is foundational for social problem-solving and conflict avoidance. The development of cognitive empathy relies heavily on the theory of mind — the recognition that people have...

Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development from Childhood into Adulthood

Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development from Childhood into Adulthood

Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development emphasizes the role of thinking in a child's learning process, suggesting that children are naturally curious about their environment. His approach to development is discontinuous, proposing that cognitive abilities progress through distinct stages, each with unique characteristics. Central to Piaget's theory is schemata—mental structures that allow individuals to understand and interpret the world.
Schemata: Building Blocks of Knowledge
Schemata...

Cognitivism

Cognitivism

Cognitive psychology emerged as a significant field in the mid-20th century. It focused on understanding humans' internal mental processes. This approach emphasizes how people perceive, remember, think, and solve problems—elements critical to human cognition.
Previously dominated by behaviorism, which prioritized observable behaviors and largely ignored mental processes, psychology transformed in the 1950s. Cognitive psychologists argue that understanding how we think and process information is...

Revisionist Views of Adolescent and Adult Cognition

Revisionist Views of Adolescent and Adult Cognition

A revisionist approach to Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development has brought new insights that challenge and reinterpret his established ideas. Piaget proposed that the formal operational stage, emerging in adolescence, represents the culmination of cognitive maturity. During this stage, individuals are said to develop abstract thinking, engage in systematic problem-solving, and show a form of egocentrism, believing others are as preoccupied with their behavior as they are themselves.

Information Processing Approach

Information Processing Approach

The information-processing theory of cognitive development centers on fundamental mental processes, including attention, memory, and problem-solving skills. Researchers in this field examine how cognitive abilities, such as working memory, evolve and influence children's overall development. Studies indicate that children with stronger working memory tend to excel in reading comprehension, math, and problem-solving compared to peers with less efficient memory skills. Low working memory is also...

Vygotsky's Cognitive Development in Cultural Context

Vygotsky's Cognitive Development in Cultural Context

Lev Vygotsky, a pioneering Russian psychologist, developed a theory of cognitive development that centers on the influence of social and cultural factors. Unlike Jean Piaget, who emphasized the child's direct interaction with the physical world as key to development, Vygotsky argued that cognitive growth is an interpersonal process that unfolds within a cultural context. For Vygotsky, a child's learning cannot be separated from their social environment, which includes the values, beliefs, and...

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by

Same author

Chimpanzee decisions in the prosocial choice paradigm depending on the position of tokens in the feeder.

Animal cognition·2026

Same author

Old age variably impacts chimpanzee engagement and efficiency in stone tool use.

eLife·2025

Same author

Genome-scale evolution in local populations of wild chimpanzees.

Scientific reports·2025

Same author

Nonadjacent dependencies and sequential structure of chimpanzee action during a natural tool-use task.

PeerJ·2024

Same author

Deep learning detects subtle facial expressions in a multilevel society primate.

Integrative zoology·2024

Same author

Flexible grouping patterns in a western and eastern chimpanzee community.

American journal of primatology·2024

Search research articles

Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jul 18, 2026

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Published on: May 5, 2015

Comparative cognitive development.

Tetsuro Matsuzawa¹

¹Primate Research Institute, Kyoto University, Inuyama, Aichi, Japan. matsuzaw@pri.kyoto-u.ac.jp

Developmental Science

|December 22, 2006

Summary

Human and chimpanzee cognitive development shows similarities early in life. However, unique social learning and memory in chimpanzees offer insights into the evolution of human cognition.

Area of Science:

Comparative psychology
Evolutionary anthropology
Primatology

Background:

Human cognition exhibits unique characteristics.
Understanding primate cognitive development is key to evolutionary insights.

Purpose of the Study:

Compare cognitive development in humans and chimpanzees.
Illuminate the evolutionary origins of human cognition.

Main Methods:

Analysis of morphological data and life history.
Studied chimpanzee cognitive development using participation observation.
Compared human infant development with chimpanzee development.

Main Results:

Humans and chimpanzees share developmental similarities up to 3 months.

More Related Videos

A Method for Investigating Age-related Differences in the Functional Connectivity of Cognitive Control Networks Associated with Dimensional Change Card Sort Performance

A Method for Investigating Age-related Differences in the Functional Connectivity of Cognitive Control Networks Associated with Dimensional Change Card Sort Performance

Published on: May 7, 2014

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization

Published on: April 19, 2017

Related Experiment Videos

Last Updated: Jul 18, 2026

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Assessment of Social Cognition in Non-human Primates Using a Network of Computerized Automated Learning Device (ALDM) Test Systems

Published on: May 5, 2015

A Method for Investigating Age-related Differences in the Functional Connectivity of Cognitive Control Networks Associated with Dimensional Change Card Sort Performance

A Method for Investigating Age-related Differences in the Functional Connectivity of Cognitive Control Networks Associated with Dimensional Change Card Sort Performance

Published on: May 7, 2014

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization

Experience is Instrumental in Tuning a Link Between Language and Cognition: Evidence from 6- to 7- Month-Old Infants' Object Categorization

Published on: April 19, 2017

Chimpanzees exhibit social learning lacking social reference seen in human children.

Chimpanzees possess distinct immediate short-term memory capabilities.

Conclusions:

Comparative analysis reveals shared primate traits and divergent cognitive paths.
Human infant caregiving practices facilitate unique communicative development.
A plausible evolutionary scenario for human cognition is presented.