Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development

Piaget’s Career

• Born 1896, Switzerland
• Early interests
• Biology (mollusks)
• Math
• Philosophy
• Work at Binet Labs
• (1921) Jean-Jacque Rousseau Institute, Geneva
• Collaboration with Barbel Inhelder
• Piaget dies, 1980

Phases in Piaget’s research

• Phase 1: (1922-1940):Piaget studies his own children
• Language & Thought of the Child (1930)
• Work on infant intelligence
• Phase 2: (1940-1960): Piaget used clinical method
• Phase 3: (1960-1980): Experimental studies of memory and philosophical/mathematical works

Piaget’s departure from traditional views of intelligence

• Applied orientation
• Emphasis on correct answers
• Concern with individual differences
• Continuous development

Cognitive structures in Piaget’s theory

• Structuralism
• Schema (action template)
• Adaptation
• Assimilation
• Accommodation
• Organization
• Differentiation
• Integration

Piaget’s criteria for stages

• Cognitive structures unique to each stage
• Invariant sequence
• Integration of earlier structures
• Consolidation
• Equilibration

Stage 1: Sensorimotor stage

• Lasts 0-1.5 years
• Thought is nonsymbolic
• Object permanence
• Displacement
• Substages
• Reflexive (0-1 mo)
• Primary circular reactions (1-4 mos)
• Secondary circular reactions (4-10 mos)
• Coordination of secondary schemes (10-12 mos)
• Tertiary circular reactions (12-18 mos)
• Symbolic representation (18-24 mos)

Stage 2: Preoperational thought

• Lasts 18 mos to 5/6 years
• Thought is symbolic
• Egocentrism (3 Mountain task)
• Animism
• Lack of operations

Stage 3: Concrete operational thought

• Lasts 5/6 to 10/11 years
• Operations
• Class inclusion
• Conservations

Stage 4: Formal operational thought

• Lasts 10/11 - 15 years
• Formal logic
• Hypothetical reasoning
• Twenty questions
• Three-term series

Chief criticisms of Piaget’s theory

• Theoretical
• No strong evidence of sequence in classification, seriation, conservation
• Model is too abstract and formal
• Lack of clear criteria for stages
• Empirical
• Task differences are important
• Training can induce skills from "later" stages
• Neglect of cross-cultural differences
• Overestimation of linguistic ability, egocentrism, animism
• Underestimation of causal understanding, classification ability
• Evidence of return to egocentrism

End of this topic