information-processing approach
analyzes how individuals encode information, manipulate it, monitor it, and create strategies for handling it
mechanisms of change
play important roles in the advances children make in cognitive development; encoding, automaticity, and strategy construction
encoding
the process by which information gets into memory
automaticity
the ability to process information with little or no effort
strategy construction
the creation of new procedures for processing information
self-modification
characterizes children's information processing; children learn to apply what they have learned in previous circumstances to adapt their responses to a new situation
metacognition
thinking about thinking or knowing about knowing
microgenetic method
used to obtain detailed information about processing mechanisms as they are occurring moment to moment; seeks to discover not just what children know, but the cognitive processes involved in how they acquired the knowledge
attention
the focusing of mental resources; improves cognitive processing for many tasks
selective attention
focusing on a specific aspect of experience that is relevant while ignoring others that are irrelevant
divided attention
concentrating on more than one activity at the same time
sustained attention
the ability to maintain attention to a selected stimulus for a prolonged period of time; also called vigilance
executive attention
involves planning actions, allocating attention to goals, detecting and compensating for errors, monitoring progress on tasks, and dealing with novel or difficult circumstances
orienting/investigative process
dominates attention in the first year of life; involves directing attention to potentially important locations in the environment and recognizing objects and their features
habituation
decreased responsiveness to a stimulus after repeated presentations of the stimulus
dishabituation
the recovery of responsiveness after a change in stimulation
joint attention
two or more individuals focus on the same object or event; requires (1) an ability to track another's behavior (2) one person directing another's attention and (3) reciprocal interaction
memory
the retention of information over time; encoding, storage, and retrieval are the basic processes required for memory
schema theory
people mold memories to fit information that already exists in their minds; guided by schemas; predicts that people don't store and retrieve bits of data in computer-like fashion
schemas
mental frameworks that organize concepts and information; influence the way people encode, make inferences about, and retrieve information
implicit memory
refers to memory without conscious recollection; memories of skills and routine procedures that are performed automatically; sometimes referred to as procedural memory
explicit memory
refers to the conscious recollection of facts and experiences; sometimes called declarative memory
long-term memory
a relatively permanent and unlimited type of memory; stores huge amounts of information for a long time
short-term memory
a type of memory that involves retaining information for 15 to 30 seconds without rehearsal of the information; has a very limited capacity
working memory
a mental "workbench" where individuals manipulate and assemble information when they make decisions, solve problems, and comprehend written and spoken language; more active and powerful in modifying information than short-term memory
autobiographical memory
involves memory of significant events and experiences in one's life
strategies
involve the use of mental activities to improve the processing of information
elaboration
a memory strategy which involves engaging in more extensive processing of information (example: thinking about personal associations with information, examples, and self-reference)
fuzzy trance theory
theory stating that memory is best understood by considering two types of memory representations: (1) verbatim memory trace and (2) gist; older children's better memory is attributed to the fuzzy traces created by extracting the gist of the information
episodic memory
the retention of information about the where and when of life's happenings (ex: what color were the walls in your bedroom when you were a child?); type of explicit memory
reminiscence bump
the idea that adults remember more events from the second and third decades of their lives than from other decades; found more for positive than negative life events
semantic memory
a person's knowledge about the world; includes a person's fields of expertise, general academic knowledge, and "everyday knowledge" (meanings of words, famous individuals, common places etc.)
tip-of-the-tongue (TOT) phenomenon
a common memory problem for older adults in which individuals can't quite retrieve familiar information but have the feeling that they should be able to retrieve it
source memory
the ability to remember where one learned something; contexts might be the physical setting, the emotional context, or the identity of the speaker
prospective memory
remembering to do something in the future
thinking
involves manipulating and transforming information in one's memory in order to reason, reflect, evaluate ideas, solve problems, and make decisions
concepts
cognitive groupings of similar objects, events, people, or ideas; used to make generalizations
executive function
an umbrella-like concept that encompasses a number of higher-level cognitive processes linked to the development of the brain's prefrontal cortex; involves managing one's thoughts to engage in goal-directed behavior and exercise self-control
critical thinking
thinking reflectively and productively, and evaluating the evidence; involves grasping the deeper meaning of ideas, keeping an open mind about different approaches and perspectives, and deciding for oneself what to believe or do
mindfulness
being alert, mentally present, and cognitively flexible while going through life's everyday activities and tasks; an important aspect of thinking critically
contemplative science
a cross-disciplinary term that involves the study of how various types of mental and physical training might enhance children's development
cognitive control
exercising effective control in a number of areas, including focusing attention, reducing interfering thoughts, and being completely flexible; increases in adolescence and emerging adulthood
cognitive flexibility
being aware that options and alternatives are available and adapting to the situation
self-efficacy
having confidence in one's ability to adapt his thinking to a particular situation; important aspect of being cognitively flexible
dual-process model
states that decision making is influenced by two cognitive systems, one analytical and one experiential, which compete with each other (it is the experiential system, monitoring and managing actual experiences, that benefits adolescents' decision making)
expertise
having extensive, highly organized knowledge and understanding of a particular domain; often shows up more among middle-aged or older adults than among younger adults
developmental cognitive neuroscience
studies links between development, the brain, and cognitive functioning; relies on brain-imaging techniques to reveal the areas of the brain that are activated when individuals are engaging in certain cognitive activities
metamemory
knowledge about memory; includes general knowledge about memory and knowledge about one's own memory
theory of mind
awareness of one's own mental processes and the mental processes of others
false beliefs
beliefs that are not true