The development of representational skills

Abstract

Representational skilk seem to emerge in a stagelike farhion at approximate4 2 years of age.

Object knowledge and the emergence of language

“…The conclusion that Specific relations and the sharp increase in new words reflected developments in object concepts is consistent with the evidence for developments in object concepts in the same period reported by Sinclair (1970) and by Lucariello (1987). These results, along with recent work by other investigators (e.g., Gopnik & Meltzoff, 1987;Nelson & Lucariello, 1985), confirm the speculation in the literature (Bloom, 1973;Corrigan, 1983;Fischer & Corrigan, 1981;McCune-Nicolich, 1981) that a vocabulary spurt in language toward the end of the second year is associated with substantive changes in cognition.…”

Dynamic Development of Action and Thought

“…Figure 7.8 shows the predicted difference in growth functions: Optimal-level growth spurted twice, at grades 11 and 13, which are comparable to the ages of optimal-level spurts found in research with American and Chinese samples (Cheng, 1999;Fischer & Kennedy, 1997;Harter & Monsour, 1992;Wang, 1997). Researchers using the skill theory framework have observed similar patterns in other types of skills, in age groups ranging from preschool to adulthood (e.g., Corrigan, 1983;Fischer & Hogan, 1989;K. Kitchener, Lynch, Fischer, & Wood, 1993).…”

A dynamic systems model of cognitive and language growth.

“…Finally, please note that the growth rates and feedback delays found in this example are typical of Dromi's subject and do not constitute general or universal parameters of vocabulary growth. Later, I discuss other data (Corrigan, 1983) with different lexical growth curves. It is likely that these parameters vary among subjects and that upper and lower boundaries of these parameters define "normality."…”

“…It is highly probable that the flattening of the learning curve following the onset of syntax is also only temporary and that it will be followed by a (probably slight) increase in the growth rate of new words, ending in a final leveling when the ultimate carrying capacity is approached. Corrigan's (1983) data on vocabulary growth in 3 children show a pattern of successive increases and decreases of the growth rate, resulting in a humped growth curve (see Figure 30). Such stepwise growth forms probably reflect the effect of oscillating growth in a sort of attentional resource variable.…”