Scales for object permanence and spatial relationships were administered to 98 severely and profoundly mentally retarded children (mean age 13 years) on three occasions, 6 months apart. Differences in the difficulty of the items were quite stable, but their order of difficulty differed appreciably from that for nonretarded infants. (Author/SB)

Ten possible sources of individual and developmental differences in memory span--rehearsal, grouping, chunking, retrieval strategies, item identification, item ordering, capacity, susceptibility to interference, search rate, and output buffer--were examined in a review of the literature. Speed with which presented items can be identified emerged…

Studied the development of the concepts of energy conservation and entropy in 5- to 15-year-old children. Energy conservation was not well understood until about age 15. Entropy was understood by 9- to 15-year-olds when the concept was illustrated by the gradual mixing of differently colored, rolling marbles. (Author/DB)

A review of research shows that while some studies support (1) the necessity of developing logical (operational) thought, (2) the maintenance of this cognitive level, and (3) the finality of the formal operational stage, the bulk of research challenges these three aspects of traditional Piagetian theory. (LRA)

Describes a general model within which various techniques of counseling and psychotherapy may be integrated. This model is based on Lewin's formula, that is, behavior is a function of the person and the environment. (Author)

Three of the four stages of cognitive development as spelled out by J. Piaget are reviewed, and several key thinking areas which relate to the development of thinking skills in young hearing impaired children are identified. Techniques for developing such skills used at the Tucker-Maxon Oral School (Portland, Oregon) are offered. (SB)

Traditional developmental protocols based on neurological or sensorimotor models frequently underestimate the cognitive status of physically handicapped infants. A critical review of current clinical practices in the area of infant assessment is followed by a discussion of an alternative approach, a perceptual-cognitive approach, and the…

Proposes theory that the learning processes of first- and second-language learners are fundamentally the same, differing only in kinds of information used by both kinds of learners and the degree of automatization attained. Suggests designing second-language learning processes to simulate those occurring in natural settings. (Author/BK)

Children between ages 9 and 13 were tested for recognizing and remembering words from 6- and 12-word lists. Developmental functions showed different growth patterns for remembering the items in a short list than for remembering order, and different patterns for storing items from a long list, than for retrieving them. (Author)

The author reviews cognitive-behavioral approaches to the training of intelligence in the retarded. A proposed structure of intelligent behavior is presented that serves as the basis for classifying the intended foci of the various training programs. (Author)

Nine experimental conditions were partitioned into three experimental designs. A total of 576 children, drawn in equal numbers from kindergarten, second, fourth and sixth grades, memorized a 32-pair list of common nouns by the study-test recognition procedure. Among the results, in the storage phase of task performance an increasing superiority of…

A procedure for evaluating the Genevan stage learning hypothesis is illustrated by analyzing Inhelder, Sinclair, and Bovet's guided learning experiments (in "Learning and the Development of Cognition." Cambridge: Harvard University Press, 1974). (Author/MP)