In which stage do children typically have a limited understanding of cause and effect?

During the sensorimotor stage, which spans from birth to about 2 years of age, children begin to explore the world through their senses and motor actions. At this stage, their understanding of cause and effect is quite limited as they are still learning how their actions can influence the environment. They engage in repeated actions and observe the results, but this understanding is basic and often tied to immediate experiences. For example, a child may repeatedly shake a rattle and notice that it makes noise, but they may not fully grasp that shaking the rattle causes the noise, especially in different contexts or with different objects.

In contrast, as children progress into the preoperational stage, which follows the sensorimotor stage, their cognitive abilities expand, allowing for more symbolic thinking and a better grasp of cause and effect, although still in a rather egocentric manner. In the concrete operational stage, they become capable of logical thinking, including more complex understandings of cause and effect relationships. Finally, the formal operational stage, which begins around age 12, involves abstract reasoning and sophisticated problem-solving, enabling a comprehensive grasp of cause and effect that extends beyond immediate situations.

Thus, it is during the sensorimotor stage that children's understanding of cause and effect