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In defense of qualitative changes in development.
1Department of Psychology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA. jk@wjh.harvard.edu
Child Development
|November 29, 2008
Summary
Research suggests early cognitive development may show more continuity than previously thought. However, claims of infant abilities resembling older children
Area of Science:
- Developmental Psychology
- Cognitive Science
- Infant Cognition
Background:
- Shifting perspectives in developmental psychology regarding cognitive development.
- Historical emphasis on transformations (Piaget) versus current focus on continuities.
- Debate on the presence of early cognitive concepts in infants mirroring older children.
Purpose of the Study:
- To critically evaluate claims of early infant cognitive abilities.
- To examine the methodologies used to infer cognitive continuity.
- To propose alternative frameworks for describing infant cognitive phenomena.
Main Methods:
- Review of existing literature on infant cognition and developmental psychology.
- Analysis of research inferring cognitive abilities from behavioral measures, specifically looking time.
- Conceptual analysis of developmental theories and constructs.
Main Results:
- The claim of early infant possession of concepts like number and object permanence is questioned.
- Inferences are often based on limited measures, such as changes in looking time.
- Existing methodologies may overstate cognitive continuity between infants and older children.
Conclusions:
- The reliance on single measures like looking time for inferring complex infant cognition is problematic.
- A critical re-evaluation of how infant cognitive abilities are described is necessary.
- Development of unique constructs is recommended to accurately represent early infant phenomena.
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