Which statement about a 2-month-old's cognitive development is accurate?

Which statement about a 2-month-old's cognitive development is accurate?

• A. Sensorimotor development
• B. Preoperational development
• C. Concrete operational development
• D. Formal operational development

Answer: (A)

Two-month-olds learn about the world by acting and sensing, which is the hallmark of the sensorimotor stage. In this period, cognition develops through reflexes and the infant’s growing ability to coordinate senses with motor actions. They explore by looking, tracking, grasping, and reacting to new stimuli, and they begin to form simple cause-and-effect understandings through repeated actions (primary circular reactions). Language, symbolic thought, and logical reasoning haven’t emerged yet, which is why later stages like preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational don’t fit an infant this age. Object permanence starts to solidify later in infancy, beyond two months, reinforcing that the primary cognitive framework here is sensorimotor.

Two-month-olds learn about the world by acting and sensing, which is the hallmark of the sensorimotor stage. In this period, cognition develops through reflexes and the infant’s growing ability to coordinate senses with motor actions. They explore by looking, tracking, grasping, and reacting to new stimuli, and they begin to form simple cause-and-effect understandings through repeated actions (primary circular reactions). Language, symbolic thought, and logical reasoning haven’t emerged yet, which is why later stages like preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational don’t fit an infant this age. Object permanence starts to solidify later in infancy, beyond two months, reinforcing that the primary cognitive framework here is sensorimotor.