Cognitive and Developmental Psychology
What this domain tests
Cognitive and developmental psychology tests models of attention, memory, language and problem-solving, plus developmental change in thinking and relationships. You must describe models, evaluate supporting evidence, and avoid treating stage theories as fixed packages.
Core rules and concepts
- Memory: the multi-store model separates sensory memory, short-term memory and long-term memory. Short-term capacity is often cited as about 7 ± 2 items, with duration around 20 seconds without rehearsal. Working memory includes the phonological loop, visuospatial sketchpad, central executive and episodic buffer.
- Encoding and retrieval: encoding specificity and levels of processing affect recall; schemas shape encoding and retrieval; memory is reconstructive, as misinformation research shows.
- Attention: selective attention filters competing input; divided attention depends on task similarity and practice; automatic processing is fast and low-effort, controlled processing is effortful.
- Piaget: sensorimotor stage includes object permanence; preoperational thinking shows egocentrism and conservation failure; concrete operational children conserve; formal operational thinking supports abstract reasoning. Schemas change through assimilation and accommodation.
- Vygotsky: development is socially mediated; the zone of proximal development is the gap between independent and supported performance; scaffolding and private speech support learning.
- Attachment: Ainsworth classified secure, avoidant, ambivalent and disorganised patterns; Harlow showed contact comfort matters; attachment is shaped by a sensitive period rather than a single critical moment.
Worked example
A 4-year-old says a taller, narrower glass contains more water than a short, wide glass. Reasoning: Piaget would call this a preoperational conservation failure. However, the child may understand more than the task shows if wording or repeated questioning confuses them. A Vygotsky-informed test would offer scaffolding and observe whether performance improves. Conclusion: the stage label is less informative than specifying task demands and support.
Traps
Do not treat Piaget’s stages as rigid; memory is not a video recording; attachment classifications are not fixed personality types; Piagetian tasks may have cultural and linguistic demands; lab memory tasks may lack ecological validity.