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Chapter Glossary
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A-not-B error  Tendency for 8- to 12-month-old infants to search for a hidden object in a place where they previously found it rather than in the place where they most recently saw it being hidden. 178
Bayley Scales of Infant and Toddler Development  Standardized test of infants' and toddlers' mental and motor development. 171
behaviorist approach  Approach to the study of cognitive development that is concerned with the basic mechanics of learning. 169
child-directed speech (CDS)  Form of speech often used in talking to babies or toddlers; includes slow, simplified speech, a high-pitched tone, exaggerated vowel sounds, short words and sentences, and much repetition; also called parentese. 197
circular reactions  Piaget's term for processes by which an infant learns to reproduce desired occurrences originally discovered by chance. 174
classical conditioning  Learning based on association of a stimulus that does not ordinarily elicit a particular response with another stimulus that does elicit the response. 30, 169
code mixing  Use of elements of two languages, sometimes in the same utterance, by young children in households where both languages are spoken. 197
code switching  Changing one's speech to match the situation, as in people who are bilingual. 197
cognitive neuroscience approach  Approach to the study of cognitive development that links brain processes with cognitive ones. 169
cross-modal transfer  Ability to use information gained by one sense to guide another. 182
deferred imitation  Piaget's term for reproduction of an observed behavior after the passage of time by calling up a stored symbol of it. 177
dishabituation  Increase in responsiveness after presentation of a new stimulus. 180
dual representation hypothesis  Proposal that children under age 3 have difficulty grasping spatial relationships because of the need to keep more than one mental representation in mind at the same time. 179
early intervention  Systematic process of providing services to help families meet young children's developmental needs. 172
elicited imitation  Research method in which infants or toddlers are induced to imitate a specific series of actions they have seen but not necessarily done before. 177
explicit memory  Intentional and conscious memory, generally of facts, names, and events; sometimes called declarative memory. 188
guided participation  Participation of an adult in a child's activity in a manner that helps to structure the activity and to bring the child's understanding of it closer to that of the adult. 188
habituation  Type of learning in which familiarity with a stimulus reduces, slows, or stops a response. 180
holophrase  Single word that conveys a complete thought. 192
Home Observation for Measurement of the Environment (HOME)  Instrument designed to measure the influence of the home environment on children's cognitive growth. 171
implicit memory  Unconscious recall, generally of habits and skills; sometimes called procedural memory. 187
information-processing approach  Approach to the study of cognitive development by observing and analyzing the mental processes involved in perceiving and handling information. 34, 169
intelligent behavior  Behavior that is goal oriented and adaptive to circumstances and conditions of life. 170
invisible imitation  Imitation with parts of one's body that one cannot see. 177
IQ (intelligence quotient) tests  Psychometric tests that seek to measure intelligence by comparing a test-taker's performance with standardized norms. 170
language  Communication system based on words and grammar. 189
language acquisition device (LAD)  In Chomsky's terminology, an inborn mechanism that enables children to infer linguistic rules from the language they hear. 194
linguistic speech  Verbal expression designed to convey meaning. 192
literacy  Ability to read and write. 198
nativism  Theory that human beings have an inborn capacity for language acquisition. 194
object permanence  Piaget's term for the understanding that a person or object still exists when out of sight. 178
operant conditioning  Learning based on association of behavior with its consequences. 31, 169
Piagetian approach  Approach to the study of cognitive development that describes qualitative stages in cognitive functioning. 169
prelinguistic speech  Forerunner of linguistic speech; utterance of sounds that are not words. Includes crying, cooing, babbling, and accidental and deliberate imitation of sounds without understanding their meaning. 189
psychometric approach  Approach to the study of cognitive development that seeks to measure the quantity of intelligence a person possesses. 169
representational ability  Piaget's term for capacity to store mental images or symbols of objects and events. 176
schemes  Piaget's term for organized patterns of thought and behavior used in particular situations. 33, 173
sensorimotor stage  In Piaget's theory, first stage in cognitive development, during which infants learn through senses and motor activity. 173
social-contextual approach  Approach to the study of cognitive development that focuses on environmental influences, particularly parents and other caregivers. 169
syntax  Rules for forming sentences in a particular language. 193
telegraphic speech  Early form of sentence use consisting of only a few essential words. 193
violation-of-expectations  Research method in which dishabituation to a stimulus that conflicts with experience is taken as evidence that an infant recognizes the new stimulus as surprising. 185
visible imitation  Imitation with parts of one's body that one can see. 177
visual preference  Tendency of infants to spend more time looking at one sight than another. 181
visual recognition memory  Ability to distinguish a familiar visual stimulus from an unfamiliar stimulus when shown both at the same time. 181
working memory  Short-term storage of information being actively processed. 188, 266







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