Child Development
Cognitive Theories
Jean Piaget
โ August 9, 1896 - September 16, 1980
โ Swiss psychologist
โ Theory of cognitive development
โ Emergence of developmental psychology
โ Pioneer of the constructivist theory
โ Dominated the study of child development
Cognitive Development Theory
โ Intelligence changes as children grow.
โ Children take an active role in the learning
process
โ Constructivist approach
โ Interaction of innate capacities + environmental
events
โ The basic unit of understanding was a scheme
(operations)
โ Organization & adaptation (assimilation,
accommodation)
Stages of Cognitive Development
1. Sensomotor (Birth-2 years old Object
Permanence)
โ Reflexive schemes sub stage (birth-1 month)
โ Primary circular reactions (1โ4 months)
โ Secondary circular reactions (4-10 months)
โ Coordination of secondary schemes/reactions
(10-12 months)
โ Tertiary circular reactions (12-18 months)
โ The beginning of thought/symbolic problem
solving (18-24 months)
โ Notable Achievement: Object Permanence
2. Pre-Operational (2-7 years old Symbolic
Thought)
โ Symbolic function substage (2-4 years old)
โ Intuitive thought substage (4-7 years old)
3. Concrete Operational (7-11 years old Logical
Thought)
โ Reversibility, Decentration
โ Quantitative relations and relational logic &
Conservation problems
โ Less egocentric
โ Mental seriation, Concept of Transitivity, &
Ability to classify objects
4. Formal-Operational (11-12 years old and
Beyond Scientific Reasoning)
โ Abstract concepts and Hypothetical events
โ Deductive reasoning and systematic planning
โ Hypotheses
โ Rational, systematic, and abstract
Educational Implications
โ Discovery learning
โ Centrality of play in children's learning
โ The notion of 'readiness' and student-centered
approach.
Lev Vygotsky
โ November 17, 1896 - June 11, 1934
โ Soviet Psychologist
โ Sociocultural Cognitive Theory
โ His work became the foundation of much
research and theory in cognitive development
Sociocultural Cognitive Theory
โ Children acquire their cultureโs values, beliefs,
and problem solving strategies through
collaborative dialogues with more
knowledgeable members of society.
โ Social Interaction
โ Sociocultural approach
โ Social + Cultural context โข Psychological Tools
Zone of Proximal Development
โ What a child can achieve independently and
what a child can achieve with the help from
others.
Psychosexual Theory (Psychoanalysis)
Sigmund Freud
โ Born in Freiberg Moravia (now the Czech
Republic) in 1856
โ Spent most of life (80 years) in Vienna Austria
โ Studied Medicine, specializing in psychiatry;
interested in science
โ Studied hysteria with Charcot & Breuer
โ Studies on Hysteria (1895)
โ Abandoned seduction theory in 1897 and
replaced it with Oedipus Complex
โ In 1900 wrote Interpretation of Dreams
โ After 1900 developed international circle of
followers (Adler, Jung, and others)
โ Was driven out of Austria by Nazis in 1938
โ Died in London in 1939
Psychosexual Stages of Development
Infantile Period (Birth up to 4 to 5 years)
โ assumption: infants possess a sexual life and go
through a period of pregenital sexual
development
โ Oral Phase
