Discuss the main criticisms of Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development.
What will be an ideal response?
- Researchers have questioned the stage conception of Piaget's theory because they contend that development proceeds in a continuous fashion.
- Critics dispute Piaget's notion that cognitive development is grounded in motor activities because it overlooks the importance of sensory and perceptual systems present from infancy.
- Recent studies cast doubt on Piaget's view that infants are incapable of mastering the concept of object permanence until they are one year of age, due to the fact that the techniques used to test infants' abilities were not sensitive enough. An infant's inability to demonstrate object permanence may be attributed to memory deficits rather than to an inability to master object permanence.
- Piaget's work has been criticized for being based upon Western cultural experience with an omission of a non-Western point of view.
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Tom has weighed 250 lbs. all of his adult life. He lost 20 lbs. while sick one time but was back up to 250 lbs. within a few weeks of getting well. Tom's experience is best explained by:
a. overjustification b. Maslow's need hierarchy c. the two-factor theory d. set point theory
Which of the following is a statement you would expect to hear from someone low in conscientiousness?
A. Morality is vital. B. I don't know why everyone is always so fussy. C. I like getting the details right. D. You have to do things in the right order.
Homeostasis refers to an imbalanced state of need that requires behavior
Indicate whether the statement is true or false.
A ________ is defined as a substance or treatment that appears identical to the actual treatment but lacks the active substance.
A. placebo B. nocebo C. sample D. variable