ERIC Number: EJ1363257
Record Type: Journal
Publication Date: 2021
Pages: 23
Abstractor: As Provided
ISBN: N/A
ISSN: ISSN-1740-5629
EISSN: EISSN-1740-5610
The Development of the Prediction of Complex Actions in Early Childhood
Melzel, Saskia; Paulus, Markus
European Journal of Developmental Psychology, v18 n2 p161-183 2021
Much of our everyday actions consist of several action steps, which are hierarchically structured. Yet, little is known about the development of the prediction of such complex actions in early childhood. The current work investigated the development of predicting means-end actions in 3- to 6-year-olds (N = 86) and an adult control group (N = 25). Participants were asked to predict the upcoming action of an actor who either needed an object (means) to achieve her goal (complex condition) or could directly achieve her goal (simple condition). Overall, children performed above chance in predicting the upcoming action of complex actions. Furthermore, simple action prediction and complex action prediction increased with age. However, overall, their performance was significantly worse for predicting complex compared to simple actions. Adults on the other hand showed ceiling performance in both conditions. Taken together, the results show that children's prediction performance of complex actions increases during early childhood. These findings expand previous research on complex action understanding to the prediction of complex actions and show substantial development during the preschool years.
Descriptors: Young Children, Adults, Prediction, Skill Development, Difficulty Level, Cognitive Processes, Activities, Time Perspective, Preschool Education
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Publication Type: Journal Articles; Reports - Research
Education Level: Early Childhood Education; Preschool Education
Audience: N/A
Language: English
Sponsor: N/A
Authoring Institution: N/A
Grant or Contract Numbers: N/A