The Freudian view of psychopathology suggests that the individual is motivated to distort reality. In contrast, social-cognitive theory views the individual as a naive social scientist, who observes his behavior, others' behavior, and the social context. Out of these observations come meaning structures which organize, guide, and structure…

Studies of human information processing have identified two basic ways people process information. Sequential learning solves problems by arranging small amounts of information in consecutive and linear order. Simultaneous processors solve problems by integrating and synthesizing parallel pieces of information at the same time. This study…

This study was concerned with distinguishing between two kinds of immature reasoning, both of which lead children to draw the same conclusions from arguments and which, therefore, cannot be distinguished by the usual tests. A total of 20 second-graders and 16 sixth-graders were tested on a logic game in which winning depended on drawing correct…

The present study attempted to identify factors associated with memory deficits in 36 learning disabled and 36 normal children in grades 3 and 5. Ss were given free and serial recall tasks and interviewed about their understanding of memory processes. Deficits in the recall of the learning disabled children were found, as expected. Examination of…

The study involving 60 learning disabled (LD) children (7-10 years old) was designed to determine if LD children go beyond the given information when trying to understand and remember sentences, i.e., do they spontaneously construct inferential relationships like adults and other children, or do they attend to and rehearse individual sentences of…

This study presents evidence to substantiate the hypothesis that an important relationship exists between prior knowledge and resulting cognitive structure subsequent to instruction; and thus that relevant existing cognitive structure is an important variable affecting learning. The subjects were 126 first-grade students. Relevant existing…

This paper discusses developmental theories of morality exemplified by the writings of Piaget and Kohlberg which emphasize cognitive processes in moral judgment. Aspects of Piaget's and Kohlberg's theories are summarized, with particular attention to the stage concept and the role of intention in moral judgment. Relevant criticisms of the…

Two studies assessed third, fifth, and seventh grade children's sensitivity to relative importance in prose. Children rated importance similarly to adults when assigned perspectives from which to read. The children's ratings were not necessarily idiosyncratic: they agreed more with each other than with adults rating the same material.…

Three experiments were conducted to determine the effectiveness of verbal and imaginal rehearsal strategies in children's discrimination learning. With verbal materials, imaging the referent of the correct item was more facilitative than vocalizing the correct item, as long as the former strategy was defined in a manner conducive to effective…

The research program described in this paper is an attempt to apply the integrated fundamental research efforts of the Center to a specific area of the elementary school curriculum, environmental education. The goals of the research program are to provide: (1) new knowledge about the interrelation of process, learning variables, and individual…

The relationship between the development of reversible thought and performance in arithmetic equations among children was investigated. Subjects were 86 second grade boys and girls. Two reversibility tasks and 20 addition and subtraction equations were administered. Results indicated significant correlations between the two variables only among…

Students in grades 4, 6, and 8 were required to indicate whether or not a stimulus word belonged in either of two semantic categories that were held in memory. Results indicated that even for the youngest children semantically similar categories required less search time than dissimilar categories. (GO)

A heterogeneous group of 60 learning disabled children (mean age=128.8 months) and a relatively homogeneous group (mean age=111.07 months) having specific reading deficits (n=58) were compared with normal children in two studies. (Author)