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VCE_Unit 1_Psychology_Development of Individual Behaviour
This area of study focuses on the development of perceptual and cognitive abilities. The development of social cognition and the changes that occure in human being's understanding of themselves as they age is covered.


 * Outcome 3**

On completion of this unit the student should be able to outline the key developmental stages in perception, cognition and understanding of self, and describe the main developmental theories in these areas.

=Key knowledge=

This knowledge includes =Key Skills=
 * research methods used to study early perceptual skills; for example, preferential looking and habituation / dishabituation;
 * infants' visual perceptual abilities using the study of Gibson and Walk (1960), and a more recent study; for example, Campos and associates (1992);
 * implications of sample size and population on research conclusions;
 * Piaget's process of assimilation and accomodation;
 * variations in self-esteem as a function of age and gender differences;
 * relationship between motor, perceptual, cognitive and social development.

These skills include the ability to
 * compare one historical with one recent research method used to study the development of perception;
 * identify factors that influence self esreem;
 * use secondary data to explain the effects of sample size on research conclusions in studies of human development.