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Theories of cognition explain how intelligence, personality, and the brain’s responses to external stimulation develop throughout life. Unified theories of cognition examine how the brain processes information, while theories of cognitive development explain the brain’s capabilities during various life stages. The brain uses assimilation and accommodation to adapt to external stimulation, and there are four stages of intellectual development: sensorimotor, preoperative, concrete operational, and formal operational.
Different theories of cognition explore how intelligence, personality, and the brain’s responses to external stimulation develop throughout life. Unified theories of cognition examine how the brain processes information, while theories of cognitive development explain the brain’s capabilities during various life stages, such as infancy and adolescence. According to some theories, while cognition is in its developmental stages, the human brain uses the techniques of assimilation and accommodation.
Within the different theories of cognition there is an explanation for how the brain responds to stimulation and what influences behavior behind human decision making. According to unified theories of cognition, the foundation of human intelligence is a series of patterns, associations and structures. Essentially, the brain looks for patterns, registers them, and initiates behavioral responses based on previous findings. When the time comes to make a decision or to choose between more than one option, the brain automatically relies on the knowledge it has acquired to make a decision.
The study of cognitive development identifies two different processes that the brain uses to adapt to external stimulation. According to different theories of cognition, assimilation changes information from an individual’s environment to match one of the existing models of the brain. Accommodation occurs when the brain changes its patterns and structures to incorporate information received from an individual’s environment.
Both accommodation and assimilation processes can be utilized by the brain during various stages of development. The different theories of cognition outline four stages of intellectual development, including sensorimotor, preoperative, concrete operational, and formal operational stages. The sensorimotor stage occurs during infancy and is characterized by physical responses to stimulation. As the child develops physically, new intelligence is gleaned from increased abilities and interactions with the environment.
The preoperative stage of cognitive development usually begins around the age of three or four. A person’s intellectual capacity is communicated and developed through language and symbols. In this stage, the brain begins to develop the ability to memorize and imagine.
According to the different theories of cognition, the concrete operational phase is the one in which the majority of adult human beings complete their development. This stage is characterized by the loss of self-centered thought patterns and the ability to think logically. The brain begins to develop a thought pattern that ties separate functions or steps together as a system.
Some adolescents and adults reach the formal operational stage. It is characterized by the ability to think abstractly and some self-centered thought patterns re-emerge during this stage. Symbols or associations within the structure of the brain become associated with a generalized or higher concept.
