Piaget's Theory

Although both glasses contain the same amount of soda, 5-year-old Suman mistakenly believes that her short, wide glass contains less soda than her brother’s tall, narrow glass. Which stage of Piaget's does Sally belong to?

• Sensorimotor

• Preoperational

• Concrete Operational

• Formal Operational

Answer explanation

Sally's misunderstanding of volume due to the glass shapes indicates she is in the preoperational stage, where children are egocentric and struggle with concepts like conservation of quantity.

Bindu believes grass grows out of the ground to protect her if she falls when she is playing outside. Which concept is best illustrated in Bindu's case?

• Object permanence

• Conservation

• Egocentrism

• Mathematical transformations

Answer explanation

Billy's belief that grass grows to protect him shows egocentrism, as he views the world solely from his perspective, thinking nature exists to serve his needs.

What is the first stage of cognitive development according to Piaget?

• Sensory-motor stage

• Formal operational stage

• Pre-operational stage

• Concrete operational stage

How long does the sensory-motor stage last?

• From birth to about 2 years old

• From 2 to about 7 years old

• From 12 years old and beyond

• From 7 to about 12 years old

What important concept do children learn in the sensory-motor stage?

• Object permanence

• Inductive logic

• Symbolic thinking

• Abstract thinking

What is a characteristic of the concrete operational stage?

• Ability to think abstractly

• Development of object permanence

• Engaging in pretend play

• Thinking logically about concrete events

At what age does the formal operational stage begin?

• At birth

• About 12 years old

• About 7 years old

• About 2 years old

What type of reasoning do children understand in the formal operational stage?

• Sensory reasoning

• Symbolic reasoning

• Object permanence

• Abstract and deductive reasoning

What is the major characteristic of the preoperational stage of cognitive development?

• Understanding conservation

• Egocentric behavior

• Abstract reasoning

• Logical thinking

At what age does the sensorimotor stage of cognitive development occur?

• 12 and up

• 7 to 11 years

• 3 to 7 years

• Birth to 2 years