The Development of Mental Processing

The Development of Mental Processing integrates several psychological approaches in order to create a more comprehensive theoretical system. This system is tested through a longitudinal study of children 8 to 16 years of age, where findings show that it is ones efficiency at processing information, which has the greatest impact on the development of the working memory. This working memory, in turn, becomes the underlying factor determining individual differences in thinking. Study presenting a developing comprehensive theorhetical system and showing its evolution. Includes commentary by Kurt Fischer and Theo Dawson. An interesting monograph for both students and researchers about the process of theory creation as much as the study's findings.

Andreas Demetriou received his Ph.D. from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. He is a professor or psychology and the Vice-Rector of the University of Cyprus. He is a member of the governing boards of several national institutions, including the Research Promotion Foundation and the Cyprus Scholarship Authority. He sits on the editorial board of several journals, including Developmental Science and Learning and Instruction: The Journal of the European Association for Research on Learning and Instruction. His research focuses on life-span cognitive development. Currently he studies the relationships between intellectual, self, and personality development. He is the author or coauthor of more than 120 publications, including The Architecture and Dynamics of Developing Mind in the Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development (1993, Serial No. 234, wiht A. Efklides and M. Platsidou), Life-Span Developmental Psychology (1998, Wiley, with W. Doise, and C.F.M. van Lieashout), and Unity and Modularity in the Mind and Self (2001, Routledge, with S. Kazi).

Constantinos Christou received his Ph.D. from the University of Toledo, Ohio, USA. He is an associate professor of mathematics education at the University of Cyprus and the vice-chairman of the Department of Education. His research focuses on the cognitive development of mathematical concepts. Currently he studies the effects of memory and information processing on the development of students' abilities in problem solving. He is the author or coauthor of 70 publications and is on the editorial board of the Mediterranean Journal of Mathematics Education.

George Spanoudis received his M.A. from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. He is a tutor and doctoral student at the University of Cyprus. His research focuses on the development of the child's theory of mind and the development of processing capacity.

Maria Platsidou received her Ph.D. from Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Greece. She is an assistant professor of psychology at the University of Macedonia, Greece. Her research focuses on moral and intellectual development. She published a number of articles in scholarly journals, including The Architecture and Dynamics of Developing Mind in the Monographs of the Society for Research in Child Development (1993, Serial No. 234, with A. Demetriou and A. Efklides).

Kurt W. Fischer earned his Ph.D. from Harvard University. He is Charles Bigelow Professor of Education and Human Development and Director of Mind, Brain, and Education at the Harvard Graduate School of Education. His research combines modeling and measurement to understand how change and variation produce diverse pathways of development and learning. Primary research directions include dynamic growth modeling of change processes, measurement of cognitive and emotional development, microdevelopmental change in real-life learning situations, development in diverse cultures, pathways to psychopathology, brain bases of cognitive change, and pedagogical implications of knowledge about development of cognition, emotion, and brain. Fischer is the author of numerous books, monographs, and scientific articles.

Theo L. Dawson received her Ph.D. from University of California, Berkeley. She is the director of the Developmental Assessment Project in the Graduate School of Education at the University of California, Berkeley. In 1999 she received the APA Division 7 Outstanding Dissertation Award. Her research centers on life-span cognitive development, and she has special interests in the problem of measurement in developmental science, and in methods for modeling complex developmental processes.

Abstract

vii

Introduction

1

(38)

The Study Methods

39

(20)

Results: The Architecture of the Mind

59

(13)

Results: The Development of Cognitive Functions

72

(16)

Results: Specifying Patterns of Change by Growth Modeling

88

(11)

Results: Specifying Patterns of Change by Logistic Equations

99

(23)

Toward an Overarching Theory

122

(12)

Appendixes

134

(13)

References

147

(8)

Acknowledgments

155

(1)

Commentary A New Kind of Developmental Science: Using Models to Integrate Theory and Research

156

(12)

Kurt W. Fischer

Theo L. Dawson

Contributors

168

(2)

Statement of Editorial Policy

170

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The Development of Mental Processing Efficiency, Working Memory, and Thinking

Summary

Author Biography

Table of Contents

Supplemental Materials