Piaget tended to view the mind as a single entity that grows as a whole.

In contrast, developmentalists who adopt the information-processing perspective treat the mind as a set of interacting components, any one of which might change as the child grows older. They attempt to explain specific changes in childrens mental abilities in terms of specific changes in one or another of the minds components or in terms of specific knowledge the child has acquired. The information processing approach to cognition, begins with the assumption that the mind is a system, analogous to a computer, for analy!ing information from the environment. "ccording to the standard information processing model , the minds basic machinery includes attention mechanisms for bringing information in, working memory for actively manipulating #or thinking about$ information, and long term memory for passively holding information so that it can be used in the future. Together, these components are analogous to the all purpose operating system that is built into a computer. In addition, the mind contains specific strategies and rules for analy!ing particular types of information or solving particular types of problems. These strategies and rules are analogous to the specific programs, such as a wordprocessing program, that are loaded into a computer. %rom the informationprocessing perspective, cognitive development can stem from changes in the minds general operating system, in its specific programs, or in both. Information Processing: A Computer Model of Cognition "n alternative to Piagets theory of cognitive development is the information-processing model, which compares the workings of the mind to a computer and studies how information is received, encoded, stored, organi!ed, retrieved, and used by people of different ages. This model offers important insights into two ma&or areas of cognition' attention and memory. Attention "ttention refers to focusing awareness on a narrowed range of stimuli. Infants pay attention to their environment for only short periods of time. (ven toddlers, who can pay attention for longer periods, are easily distracted. )hen watching television, for example, * year olds talk more to other people, play more with toys, and look around the room more than + year olds. "s they get older, childrens attention spans improve, and they learn to discriminate between what is and what is not important to concentrate on at any given time. Memory "fter children attend to information and take it into their information processing system, they must remember it. "ttention determines what information enters the ,computer,- whereas memory determines what information is saved. .ike attention, memory skills also improve gradually throughout childhood and adolescence #/uisande et al., *0012 3ayne, 4oniface, 5 4arr, *0002 )ang, *006$. Two year olds can repeat back about two digits immediately after hearing them, but 70 year olds can repeat about six. Improvement comes as children acquire strategies during the school years for storing and retrieving information. %or example, they learn to rehearse or repeat information over and over,

to use mnemonics #like ,i before e except after c-$, and to organi!e their information in ways that facilitate retrieval #8hapter 1$. "s people grow older, their use of information processing strategies and overall memory continues to change. 9ecall from 8hapter 6 that fl uid intelligence #requiring speed or rapid learning$ tends to decrease with age, whereas crystallized intelligence #knowledge and information gained over the life span$ continues to increase until advanced old age. :espite their concerns about ,keeping up with 76 year olds,- older returning students often do as well or better than their younger counterparts in college classes. This superior performance by older adult students is due in part to their generally greater academic motivation, but it also refl ects the importance of prior knowledge. 8ognitive psychologists have demonstrated that the more people know, the easier it is for them to lay down new memories #/oldstein, *0062 ;atlin, *006$. <lder students, for instance, generally fi nd this chapter on development easier to master than younger students. Their interactions with children and greater knowledge about life changes create a framework on which to hang new information. In summary, the more you know, the more you learn. Thus, having a college degree and stimulating occupation may help you stay mentally sharp in your later years #=chaie, *0062 )hitbourne, *00>$. Havent studies also shown decreases in older adults memory capabilities? "s mentioned at the beginning of the chapter, this may refl ect problems with crosssectional versus longitudinal research. <ne ongoing, and very encouraging, longitudinal study involves almost 100 nuns in a convent in ;innesota #;ortimer, =nowdon, 5 ;arkesbery, *0012 =nowdon, *00?$. This research, along with others, documents the brains ama!ing ability to grow and change throughout the life span . 8ontrary to popular stereotypes of the frail and forgetful elderly, growing old, for most of us, will probably be better than expected@and, of course, far better than the alternativeA