Three-year-old Audrey is presented with a picture-matching problem, "Play dough is to cut-up play dough as a loaf of bread is to . . . ?" Which answer is Audrey is most likely to select?
A) a cut-up apple
B) a biscuit
C) bread crumbs
D) a cut-up loaf of bread

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

Three-year-old Audrey is in the preoperational stage of cognitive development according to Piaget's theory. At this stage, children can understand simple, concrete analogies but struggle with abstract reasoning. Therefore, Audrey may not be able to understand the relation between play dough and cut-up play dough, but she can match a loaf of bread with a cut-up loaf of bread. Choice A (a cut-up apple) and choice B (a biscuit) are not the correct matches for a loaf of bread. Choice C (bread crumbs) may not make sense to her at this age, as she may not understand the concept of crumbs from bread.

Three-Year-Old Audrey Is Presented with a Picture-Matching Problem, "Play Dough