Question

Which of the following is true with regard to the understanding of category membership in children?

A) In general, 3-year-old children are able to understand that members of the same category share similar characteristics.

B) At 2-years-old, children are able to understand the innate properties of a given category (e.g., they know that you cannot change a racoon into a skunk by painting it).

C) Children are not able to understand the innate properties of a given category (e.g., they believe that you can change a racoon into a skunk by painting it) until the age of 5.

D) Children are not able to generalize specific characteristics of a category member to other members of that category until age 5.

Answer 1

The understanding of category membership in children develops over time. At 2-years-old, children are not able to understand the innate properties of a given category, but by the age of 5, they can understand these properties.

Step-by-step explanation:

The understanding of category membership in children develops over time. It is incorrect to say that 3-year-old children are able to understand that members of the same category share similar characteristics (option A). At 2-years-old, children are not able to understand the innate properties of a given category, such as knowing that you cannot change a raccoon into a skunk by painting it (option B). However, children are able to understand the innate properties of a given category, including the inability to change one object into another by modifying its appearance, by the age of 5 (option C). Furthermore, children begin to generalize specific characteristics of a category member to other members of that category by the age of 5 (option D).