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Preschoolers' understanding of the relationship ...

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Preschoolers' understanding of the relationship between perceptual access and accuracy of knowledge: a study of 4- and 5-year-olds' judgments about model peers

Name:Personal
Cooper, Kathryn Ann Role :Text(marcrelator)
creator

Name:Personal
Alcorn, Mark Role :Text(marcrelator)
thesis advisor

Name:Personal
McDevitt, Teresa Role :Text(marcrelator)
thesis advisor

Name:Personal
Pulos, Steven Role :Text
committee member

Name:Personal
Geringer, Jennifer Role :Text
committee member

Name:Corporate
Educational Psychology Role :Text(marcrelator)
sponsor

Name:Corporate
University of Northern Colorado Role :Text(marcrelator)
degree grantor

typeOfResource
text genre(marcgt)
Thesis
Origin Information Place

University of Northern Colorado (keyDate="yes")
2009-08 Place :Text
2009-08

Language :Text
English

Physical Description
198 pages
born digital

abstract
Knowing the relationship between perceptual access and the accuracy of knowledge is a critical skill for acquiring accurate information directly or indirectly from another. Some informants are more reliable than others although careful attention must be paid to whether they have appropriate perceptual access in order to acquire accurate information. In this study, I explored whether 4- and 5-year-olds (N = 176) used their previous knowledge evaluations of two model peers and their own knowledge of where knowledge comes from to determine who to trust when acquiring indirect knowledge about physical objects. Older children were more successful in identifying which sensory organ they used when acquiring modality-specific knowledge but both older and younger children overestimated the use of their eyes. I also found that 4- and 5-year-olds evaluated a peer's knowledge based more on whether a peer was previously accurate and therefore reliable than on whether the peer had appropriate perceptual access to acquire accurate knowledge. Five-year-olds were more successful than 4-year-olds when evaluating peers' knowledge acquisition of modality-specific attributes of physical objects. Regardless of age, children were more successful in determining whom to learn from when the peer that was previously reliable also had appropriate perceptual access than when the peer that was previously reliable did not have appropriate perceptual access to acquire knowledge about physical objects. These findings expand upon previous research in a number of ways, most importantly by showing that children's tracking ability of a peer's accuracy is quite strong and the results of the peer's track record is a more important guide in determining whom to learn from than whether a peer has appropriate perceptual access. Also, the results of this study extend others' evidence that children overestimate the value of sight when asked how modality-specific knowledge was acquired. note
[Released from one-year embargo.]
Related Item :series

Related Item :thesis(displayLabel="Degree Type")
doctoral

Related Item :thesis(displayLabel="Degree Name")
Ph.D.

identifier:Local
Cooper_unco_0161N_10010.pdf
Location (usage="primary display")
http://hdl.handle.net/10176/cogru:113

accessCondition:useAndReproduction
Copyright is held by the author.
Record Information languageOfCataloging :Text(ISO639-2B)
English :Code(ISO639-2B)
eng

note:admin
 note:bibliography
 note:thesis(displayLabel="Degree Type")
PhD note:thesis(displayLabel="Degree Name")
doctoral
Subject

Subject

Subject Name:Personal

Subject Name:Corporate

Subject

accessCondition:restrictionOnAccess
Title Information:Alternative


Subject
Theory of Mind

Subject
Educational Psychology

Subject
Developmental Psychology

Subject
Epistemology

Subject
Trustworthiness

Subject
Perceptual Access

Subject
Source Monitoring