Jean Piaget's Influence On Cognitive Development

Sub-stage 5-twelve to eighteen months, this stage is characterized by a child’s ability to conceptualize the idea that an object that cannot be seen still exists. The sixth and final sub-stage of the Sensorimotor Period is eighteen to twenty-four months, this stage is characterized by a child’s ability to understand through reasoning and express themselves creatively (Lefmann & Combs-Orme, 2013). Stage 2-Pre-operational Thought (i.e., 2 - 7 years old); the Pre-operational Thought period is defined by a child's ability to create their own form of communication. Sub-stages of the Pre-operational Thought are characterized by a child’s ability to identify characteristics of photographs and their use of an intuitive thought process (Powell & Kalina, 2009). Concrete Operations (i.e., 7 – 12 years old); the Concrete Operational period is defined by a child's ability to reason logically. Formal Operations (i.e., 12 years old - Adulthood); the Formal Operational period is defined by a child's ability to use critical thinking and analytical reasoning to approach new challenges. Children initially enter into action-based (sensorimotor) and progress into a mental (operational) level as they grow older (Powell & Kalina, 2009). A comparison of the theories of Jean Piaget and Erik Erikson is important to gain a holistic point of view of a child’s developmental progress.

Jean Piaget was a theorist that focused on individual’s mental processes (Rathus, S., & Longmuir, S., 2011, p.10). Piaget analyzed how children distinguish and mentally show the world and how there, logic, thinking and problem-solving ability is developed (Rathus, S., & Longmuir, S., 2011, p.10). Piaget believed that children’s cognitive processes develop in an orderly sequence (Rathus, S., & Longmuir, S., 2011, p.10). It has 4 stages such as, sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational and, formal operational (Rathus, S., & Longmuir, S., 2011, p.11). In this paper, I will discuss how Piaget developed his theory and how toys can meet each need during the 4 specific stages.

Jean Piaget’s Preoperational Stage greatly contributes to the cognitive development in children. The main area in the preoperational stage is make-believe play. Piaget believed that when children have make-believe playtime they are exercising and enhancing newly required representational schemes. Make-believe play is very important in children’s development because it gives a child the opportunity to engage in problem-solving, communication, and empathy. Make-believe play also encourages imagination and creativity.

Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development is a theory built upon stages in the development of children. Each stage in this theory pertains to specific age ranges, and involves cognitive achievements and limitations distinct to that age. The theory attempts to depict how children understand the world throughout their development. Though the theory follows an age range with certain the theory itself should not always be seen as concrete (Bibace, 2013). This paper will focus on the stages of development in relation to Keller, a young boy in the Child Development Center for Learning and Research.

Jean Piaget (1936), was a developmental psychologist from Switzerland. He was known to be one of the first psychologists to study cognitive development. His contributions include an in depth theory of cognitive child development. His studies include many detailed child observations and a series of simple but ingenious tests to reveal a child cognitive abilities. Before Piaget’s theory of development many psychologists believed that children were just less competent thinkers then adults. Piaget argues that this was in fact incorrect and children just thought differently to adults (simplypsychology.org).

Jean Piaget is considered to be very influential in the field of developmental psychology. Piaget had many influences in his life which ultimately led him to create the Theory of Cognitive Development. His theory has multiple stages and components. The research done in the early 1900’s is still used today in many schools and homes. People from various cultures use his theory when it comes to child development. Although there are criticisms and alternatives to his theory, it is still largely used today around the world.

A central theme in developmental psychology is the question of how development can be conceptualized. One approach is to divide development into different stages. For example Freud (..) and Piaget (2003, 2000, 1985) described development as a qualitatively distinct series of stages. But there has been criticism about stage-based approaches in terms of how it is able to take on account the individual differences between children in development. The focus of this essay is on Piaget’s theory because it is one of the most influential theories. Furthermore, this essay will evaluate whether Piaget’s theory is able to account for individual differences in cognitive development. The main focus will be the development of children.

When we are born we have a different mindset then when we are at adult age. We view

Cognition is a complex idea, making it difficult to describe. Hooper and Umansky (p. 307, 2014) define cognitive development as an individual’s ability to translate objects and events into a symbolic form that can be stored in the brain. Cognition can be measured with perceptual and conceptual skills. Perceptual skills are the connection between the senses and experiences. Conceptual skills are higher level processing, such as, making decisions and problem solving (Hooper and Umansky, 2014).

Jean Piaget 's theory of cognitive development gives a broader way of explaining the way of how the process of thinking is developed, based off of different age groups. He became interested in how organisms adapt and conform to its environment. He believe that it was labelled as intelligence. He observed these behaviors by controlling them through schema or schemes. In other words, Piaget organized experiments that are based off of intellectual properties of thinking (McLeod, 2009). This is also where he describes two processes that are used in the conformity of an individual. Assimilation, which is the process of using the environment to change it into previous cognitive structures; and Accommodation, which is the process of changing these cognitive structures in order to accept that specific item or object for the environment (Feldman, 2013). The theory is broken up into four stages. Sensorimotor, pre-operational, concrete operational, and formal operational. We focus on the pre-operational and concrete operational stages of the cognitive development theory.

This essay seeks to investigate the strengths and weaknesses of Piaget’s theory on cognitive development. It will focus on Piaget’s work highlighting positive attributes and how they’re being applied in modern day and also delve on key limitations of the theory. Piaget was a Swiss psychologist who was interested on why children would give similar but wrong answers in an intelligence test (Vidal, 1994). Based on his observations, he concluded that children undergo sequential cognitive development patterns which occur in defined stages in which the child has to follow in succession (Martin, Carlson & Buskist, 2013). Consequently, we will focus on the cognitive abilities of a child in relation to socio-cultural influence and research methodology that Piaget used.

There have been many people that have made huge contributions to the school of psychology. Perhaps one of the most influential theorists was Jean Piaget. Piaget was a philosopher, biologist, educationalist, and psychologists. He decided to study the many ways in which children develop knowledge. He made many contributions to his theories on the cognitive development stages. Cognitive development is the process of acquiring intelligence an increasingly advance thought and problem-solving ability from infancy to adulthood (Oakley 2004). It was Piaget who first noted that children learned difficulty than adults do in the ways in which they thought about and interpreted the world (Oakley 2004). He’s ideas were that adults did not simply know more than children, but that their knowledge of the world was structured differently. Piaget suggested that children at different stages of their development thought about and interpreted their world in many different ways (Oakley 2004). There are three main principals of Piaget’s theory along with the four stage of cognitive development that will be discussed in the paper below. Thanks to Piaget, the theory of cognitive development has made a significant impact in the way that teachers teach in the classroom today.

Jean Piaget (1896 – 1980) was the first psychologist to make a systematic study of cognitive development. He wanted to answer the fundamental question of how does a child’s knowledge of the world change with age. In answering this question, Piaget made the assumption that the child is an active participant in the development of knowledge; constructing his/her own understanding. This idea, perhaps more than others, has influenced the thinking of all developmentalists who have followed Piaget. However, the hundreds of studies that have been done since Piaget’s original account of cognitive development have found a number of shortcomings in his theory. Even so, his basic assumption on cognitive changes from infancy to

Piaget's Stages of Cognitive Development Very briefly describe Piaget’s stages of cognitive development and explain what he meant by saying that young children are egocentric. Use experimental evidence to consider this claim. Cognitive development is what psychologists talk about when discussing a child’s intellectual growth. Jean Piaget (1896 to 1980), a Swiss psychologist developed a theory of cognitive development, which is still much discussed and critiqued today. Providing a firm building block to all work done in the study of child development and the concept that young children are egocentric.

Jean Piaget, a cognitivist, believed children progressed through a series of four key stages of cognitive development. These four major stages, sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational, are marked by shifts in how people understand the world. Although the stages correspond with an approximate age, Piaget’s stages are flexible in that if the child is ready they can reach a stage. Jean Piaget developed the Piagetian cognitive development theory. Piaget’s theory of cognitive development proposes that a child’s intellect, or cognitive ability, progresses through four distinct stages. The emergence of new abilities and ways of processing information characterize each stage. Jean Piaget's theory of cognitive development suggests that children move through four different stages of mental development. His theory focuses not only on understanding how children acquire knowledge, but also on understanding the nature of intelligence.