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7Cognitive Development: Piaget and Vygotsky
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Learning Objectives
After completing this module, you should be able to:
ሁ Compare and contrast the Piagetian processes of assimilation
and accommodation.
ሁ Conceptualize Piaget’s four stages of cognitive development
and identify major changes that occur at
each stage.
ሁ Outline the substages of sensorimotor development.
ሁ Examine adolescent egocentrism and provide examples of
how it is demonstrated.
ሁ Evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of Piaget’s stage
theory.
ሁ Summarize how cognitive development takes place,
according to sociocultural theory.
ሁ Compare Piaget’s perspective on cognitive development with
Vygotsky’s.
Section 7.1Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory
Prologue
We have all heard that a child is a “sponge for knowledge.” But
how does that process actu-
ally occur? How do children naturally learn to navigate the

world, and why is some informa-
tion easier to learn than other information? As adults, we can
reflect on our own learning,
perhaps even falling back on the circular argument that you
learn some things because you
“understand it better” or “it’s easier to learn.” In this way, we
take for granted learning and the
mental processes that prescribe cognitive development.
However, the way in which children
experience the world is fundamentally different from the way in
which adults learn.
This module focuses on two of the most influential figures in
the study of cognitive develop-
ment and the empirical evidence that supports their theories.
Those theories are used as a
foundation for learning about the development of skills that are
both natural, like language,
and culturally valued, like those promoted within our education
system. As such, these two
perspectives provide a gateway for later modules to explore how
the study of cognitive devel-
opment is applied. By exploring how children’s minds
understand the world, we can discover
ways to improve learning and also devise early intervention
strategies that can begin to com-
pensate for cognitive deficits.
7.1 Piaget’s Cognitive Development Theory
As introduced in Module 1, Jean Piaget was convinced that
children become cognitively more
sophisticated as a result of maturation and the way they interact
with and manipulate the
world. He believed that intellectual development conforms to
discontinuous stages, which are
predetermined by biology. One stage prepares children to enter

the next. Maturational pro-
cesses determine advancement between discrete stages. Then,
when children are provided
opportunities to learn, they advance within each stage until
maturational processes prescribe
the next stage. In contrast, behaviorism views reinforcement of
each task as the key to pro-
moting growth; one unit of learning provides potential for
learning another.
Piaget developed his cognitive theory primarily by observation
and three case studies—of
his own children. He carefully recorded their behaviors
throughout their childhoods. He
also manipulated the environment and constructed problems,
like finding hidden items, that
helped him discover the processes underlying thought.
He theorized that the stages of development are initiated
by biology and governed by the principles of organization
and adaptation. Advancement in thinking is organized
around increasingly sophisticated cognitive structures
while the child adapts to demands of the environment.
Organization and Adaptation
In Piaget’s cognitive theory, children and adolescents organize
mental information in much
the same way that they build physical structures. For example,
infants often find great joy
when they conduct experiments from their high chairs. When
food is placed on the tray, they
like to drop it on the floor, often leaning over the side with
interest. They repeat the dropping
Critical Thinking
Name some ways to promote thinking in young

minds.
pattern over and over again, in the same way that an older child
would continue to recon-
struct a tower of blocks that persistently falls. Dropping food
may at first be a random activity,
but it becomes more deliberate as infants organize the dropping
experiences into a pattern
that makes sense. Cognition is advanced with each trial,
regardless of the outcome. If a tomato
splatters or remains intact, children organize the information
into a learning experience.
Sometimes outcomes from a tomato dropping remain the same;
other times they change.
According to Piaget, infants organize their mental patterns and
experiences into cognitive
structures called schemas (or schemes), including dropping food
from their high chairs.
A schema is like a concept. Infant schemas are based on
concrete activities, like grasping,
sucking, and throwing. Toddlers commonly develop
schemas for specific kinds of animals. For instance, if
a child’s experiences of cats are only of the long-hair
variety, then cats might be conceptualized as having
four legs, whiskers, and long fur. Upon encountering a
hairless cat, the child might be puzzled since the animal
does not fit an existing schema. The new information
will then be used to modify the previous “cat” schema.
As they age, infants and toddlers progress from immediate
sensory and motor experiences to

ones that are more speculative and theoretical. For example,
infants may get to understand
how food “explodes” after it is thrown as well as the potential
for parents to behave in particu-
lar ways afterwards. Because adolescents have more
sophisticated cognition, they can under-
stand the consequences of throwing food—both what it might
look like and the reaction of
others—without experimenting with the behavior.
This example also shows how children adapt to increasingly
complex ways of thinking. Adap-
tation is the process of adjusting to new demands and
consequences of behavior. It is much
less acceptable for an older child to throw food. (Though some
parents might find it difficult
to accept, from a Piagetian perspective, throwing food is to be
expected.) The transition from
random observations to purposeful trial-and-error experiments
to thoughtful reflection is
not a passive activity whereby children simply acclimate to
what is directed at them. On the
contrary, Piaget stressed that children actively organize their
experiences into schema. For
example, a “grasp and throw” schema for a 1 year old might
include only soft objects like foam
balls and banana pieces that can easily mold into a hand. The
child soon learns that other
small, malleable objects can be grasped and thrown in a similar
fashion. Piaget called this
process of interpreting new objects or events within an existing
schema assimilation. New
“throwable” objects are assimilated into the prevailing schema.
Instead of always assimilating information into existing
structures, sometimes we have to

adapt current understanding to what is being experienced. For
instance, the infant in the
previous example cannot assimilate an inflatable beach ball into
the existing “grasp and
throw” schema because more than a simple grip is needed to
gain control of the large ball. The
schema does not fit the environment, so the infant must either
adjust the schema or create a
new one. Modifying an existing schema or constructing a new
schema to fit changing aware-
ness of reality is called accommodation. When larger, slipperier
objects like beach balls are
encountered, the schema will be modified to accommodate new
ways of thinking.
Critical Thinking
Is a spider an insect? A bug? Both? How you
answer this question is based on how you have
constructed the (concrete) schema for spider.
F O C U S O N B E H A V I O R : A s s i m i l a t i o n a n d
A c c o m m o d a t i o n
My wife is a kindergarten teacher. Every year some children
will at first call her “Mom.”
The 5 year olds, many of whom have never been in school
before, are demonstrating
assimilation to a “nurturing woman” schema. When they are
told that she is “Mrs. Mossler,”
the schema for “Mom” is modified. This change in cognitive
organization demonstrates
accommodation.

In this way, assimilation and accommodation represent the two
sides of adaptation, or
what Piaget would call cognitive learning. Organizing the world
in an increasingly sophis-
ticated manner like this is largely a matter of maturation. When
toddlers see a wolf at the
zoo, they may say, “Look at the doggie,” because so far their
experiences with furry animals
have been limited. That is assimilation. When a parent says,
“No, that’s a wolf,” children
accommodate by organizing what they see into a different
schema. When students submit
essays electronically, some professors print them so that they
can mark comments manu-
ally; this is assimilation. When professors learn to use simple,
built-in electronic editing
features of word processing or portable document format (pdf )
applications, they are dis-
playing accommodation.
Although the distinction among Piaget’s stages epito-
mizes discontinuity, the processes of assimilation and
accommodation are more continuous. There is a con-
stant adjustment in emphasis between them. Further-
more, over time the balance between them changes.
According to Piaget, when children are able to incorpo-
rate new information about the world into existing sche-
mas, they are in a state of cognitive equilibrium. That is, when
assimilation is the primary
mode of understanding new information, there is a certain
congruency between the mind and
the environment. This process of being able to maintain a stable
understanding of the world
is called equilibration.

Inconsistencies arise when children cannot assimilate incoming
information into existing
schemas. In these cases, disequilibrium exists, as previously
constructed frameworks need
to be adjusted. In other words, there is a shift in the balance
toward accommodation. When
this situation occurs, children are said to be in a state of
disequilibration. They become aware
of a sense of inadequacy, which becomes a natural motivation
for learning. For instance, when
people cannot figure out how to get to the next level in a video
game because behaviors (i.e.,
game movements) do not fit into existing schemas, they are in a
state of disequilibrium, which
drives learning. The cognitive discomfort motivates change and
a search for equilibrium.
In sum, children are interested in the world and have much to
learn, requiring enormous cog-
nitive resources. Not everything they know at any given point
fits perfectly with the world.
Experience can introduce new information that challenges what
children know, which moti-
vates discovery and cognitive advancement. Piaget would say
that existing schema are either
organized in a way that promotes understanding or they are not.
If they are, then there is
equilibration and new information is understood conceptually
within an existing cognitive
Critical Thinking
Describe the processes of assimilation and
accommodation with regards to learning how to
use a new video game controller.

framework. When experiences do not fit into existing schemas,
disequilibration results. In
this case, accommodation will trump assimilation until
equilibration occurs once again.
S E C T I O N R E V I E W
Describe the processes of assimilation and accommodation and
their association with
equilibration.
Piaget’s Stages of Cognitive Development
Piaget noticed a great deal of consistency in the timing of
cognitive changes among children.
There are periods of development when there is relative
equilibrium and other times when
there is more disequilibrium. The similarity across children led
Piaget to develop the stage
theory of cognitive development. As summarized in Table 7.1,
four stages represent discon-
tinuous aspects of cognitive growth. Piaget emphasized the
qualitative differences between
each stage, which occur after only brief transitional periods.
Although distinct changes in
thinking exist between stages, as children continue to grow
through assimilation and accom-
modation, growth during each stage remains more fluid and
continuous.
Table 7.1: Key features of Piagetian stages
Stage Theory Application
Sensorimotor

Ages 0–24 months
• Thought develops using
sensory and motor activities
• Development of object
permanence
• Symbolic thought at the end
of this period
Children repeat behaviors to
discover patterns. They look for
objects that “disappear,” includ-
ing parents.
Preoperational
Ages 2–7
• Egocentrism
• Judgment based on
appearance
• Difficulty with classification
• Inability to conserve
Children play make-believe. They
engage in games with rules.
Concrete
Ages 7–12
• Conservation
• Logical thought
• Transitivity
• Seriation

• Multilevel classification
Children are interested in
(concrete) rules. They can find
solutions to complex problems,
if they can be found in a step-by-
step fashion. They can use mul-
tiple systems of classification.
Formal
Ages 12 and older
• Abstract reasoning
• Deductive reasoning
• Hypothetical thinking
Adolescents hypothesize about
different outcomes, including
short-term and long-term plan-
ning. They can make abstract
arguments, taking into account
multiple perspectives.
Source: Piaget, J. (2006). The origin of intelligence in the child.
New York: Routledge. (Originally published 1953.)
In the same way that children cannot be forced to walk
before they are physically ready, they cannot perform
certain intellectual tasks, either. Cognitive stages will
emerge in the same way that walking, running, hopping,
and skipping (in that order) will spring forth from nor-
mal physical opportunities. Piaget would say that intel-

lectual tasks need prerequisite abilities, just like walk-
ing precedes skipping, but with ordinary stimulation
intermediate tasks will eventually be mastered anyway.
At the same time, though, if early skills are not pro-
moted, later skills may be relatively inferior. Cognitively,
children need varied intellectual experiences in order to
later master more sophisticated thinking abilities.
Sensorimotor Stage
The first of Piaget’s stages is the sensorimotor stage,
which lasts from birth to about age 2. Infants gain cogni-
tive understanding primarily through their senses and
movements, which are coordinated through reflexes.
That is, initial voluntary behaviors arise from innate,
involuntary reflexes. For instance, newborns will
reflexively close their hands when objects are placed in
them, but during the first 6 weeks of life they learn to grasp
voluntarily. During the next few
months, children gradually learn to integrate behaviors. They
may combine grasping and
sucking reflexes into a coordinated activity whereby they grasp
an object and then suck on
it. Children continue to use their sensory and motor (movement)
abilities to fulfill goals. This
behavior is demonstrated by repeating actions and forming
habits, like preferring one toy
to another.
During the second year, infants move from habit-like activities
to more experimental ones.
They enjoy touching new objects, throwing toys repeatedly to
see how they might land differ-
ently, repeating movements that result in unique sounds (like
banging two objects together),
and experimenting with vocal sounds. Infants demonstrate little

more than reflexes at the
beginning of the sensorimotor stage, but by the end, they show
vast cognitive changes. To
differentiate further among the complex developmental
advances of the sensorimotor stage,
Piaget divided it into six substages.
Substage 1: Reflexes (birth–1 month) Newborns exhibit
involuntary responses to stimuli
and begin the assimilation process to sources of stimulation. For
instance, infants assimilate
visual and auditory stimuli by visually tracking where the
stimulation originated. Orally, neo-
nates will at first reflexively suck just about any object. Soon
thereafter, they will adapt their
responses in order to differentiate and understand when specific
nipple-like stimuli are pres-
ent. This is the process of accommodation. Depending on the
characteristics of the nipple,
including its shape and the stream of milk that is expressed, the
sucking reflex is later modi-
fied as infants begin to assimilate to their feeding environment.
That is, the range of sucking
and feeding behaviors is expanded. Because this stage focuses
on reflexes, infants do not yet
coordinate different activities. For instance, they will not track
a finger in order to grasp it.
During this substage, infants build on innate reflexive
processes. Gradually, those reflexes
become voluntary behaviors that children use to interact with
the world.
Ryan McVay/Digital Vision/Thinkstock
ሁ Piaget theorized that cognitive
development progressed in distinct

stages.
Substage 2: Primary Circular Reactions (1–4 months) Infants
in this stage do not yet
have extensive capability to actively explore the environment,
so the focus is on their own
bodies, what Piaget called primary behaviors. They develop
repetitive behaviors, or habits,
based on actions that they find pleasurable. For instance, when
infants accidentally suck on
a finger, it brings pleasure. They will be motivated to re-create
that behavior. Piaget (2006
[1953], p. 97) described his 12-week-old son Laurent becoming
aware of his own spontane-
ous finger and arm movements. On subsequent days, Laurent
purposely brought his arm into
view and derived joy when he saw it. The actions became both
coordinated and repetitive.
Infants are not just “looking for the sake of looking.” Instead
they are actively “looking in
order to see” (p. 70). Similarly, the innate grasping reflex is
gradually replaced by voluntarily
extending the arm to purposefully clutch objects. Because these
actions become repetitive,
they are referred to as circular.
F O C U S O N B E H A V I O R : C i r c u l a r R e a c t i o
n s
Caregivers will sometimes position the hands of neonates so
that babies can suck on their
fists and self-soothe. Though this behavior is not accidental,
Piaget would still classify it

as a primary (rather than secondary) circular reaction. At first,
infants suck on their fists
because the adult has made the object available. It may take a
number of attempts, but
most neonates will eventually begin to suck. However, the
“bring fist to mouth” behavior
is still not voluntary, because neonates cannot perform it by
themselves. Soon enough,
though, infants will accidentally find their mouths with their
fists and begin sucking. Now
that they understand the self-initiated process that established
the behavior, they will be
able to repeat it. This example also shows how the ref lexive
“sucking” schema has been
modified to accommodate a new type of stimulus—one that uses
a fist instead of a nipple
in order to self-soothe.
Substage 3: Secondary Circular Reactions (4–8 months)
Infants now have the motor
capability to create experiences that are outside their bodies.
Individual behaviors are sec-
ondary because babies experience the effects of their actions on
external objects, not just
themselves. For example, babies will become fascinated if an
accidental movement of a rattle
causes a new sound. They will then want to reproduce the
sound. These accidental occur-
rences lead to new schemas. By chance, babies may sweep food
off of a tray. In doing so,
they may become interested in seeing the way it flies or feels
when squished, which leads
to actions that will re-create the prior outcome. Infants in this
stage also begin to imitate
behaviors, but only if they have already produced the behavior.

That is, they will show inter-
est in novel actions like clapping, but they do not have the
cognitive flexibility (cannot adapt)
to imitate the clapping behavior unless they have already
discovered clapping on their own
(Kaye & Marcus, 1981).
Substage 4: Coordination of Secondary Circular Reactions (8–
12 months) Next, infants
learn to coordinate multiple circular reactions. In substage 4,
infants now have intentional
(goal-directed) behavior. That is, they know their actions will
bring about certain effects. For
instance, an infant might knock over a basket of toys
specifically to obtain one that was hard
to reach. Piaget famously demonstrated the coordination of
schemas by hiding an appealing
toy behind a cover. To recover the toy, infants had to
successfully coordinate visual and motor
schemas (“tracking,” “pushing aside,” and “grasping”).
Searching for a hidden object reveals that infants begin to
understand that objects continue to
exist even when they cannot be seen. According to Piaget, this
mastery of object permanence
is one of the most important accomplishments of infant
cognitive development. Infants also
use their understanding of object permanence to engage in
intentional behavior. For instance,
when a primary caregiver begins to leave, a 1-year-old child
may begin to cry with the inten-
tion of not being left alone (see also separation anxiety in

Section 13.1). Children may lift their
arms in hopes of being held or attempt to run away when it is
time to nap. Also in this substage,
infants will imitate behaviors initiated by others, like making
faces, stacking particular kinds
of items, or playing pat-a-cake. Whereas substage 3 infants need
to discover behaviors (like
clapping) on their own before they are capable of imitating the
behavior, now they can gener-
ate what they see (e.g., stacking blocks) without first
discovering the behavior on their own.
Substage 5: Tertiary Circular Reactions (12–18 months) At
the tertiary (third) level,
infants demonstrate versatility by purposefully creating new
schemas. Children will be
intrigued by the different reactions and devise experiments to
change outcomes. They become
“little scientists” as they engage in trial-and-error activities
instead of giving in to frustration.
For instance, if a barrier prevents access to an appealing
stimulus, they may devise a way to
bypass the barrier such as dragging a bucket on which to stand
in order to climb over the bar-
rier. Trial-and-error problem solving is also demonstrated when
children take toys apart and
then attempt to fit them back together.
Toddlers will also devise experiments like crashing toys into
several different objects to make
different sounds or to observe different trajectories. Like in
substage 3, children will repeat
their experiments, but now they can modify their actions to
create new experiences. For
instance, Piaget placed a stick outside his daughter Jacqueline’s
playpen, knowing that it was

an attractive object. At first, Jacqueline tried to pull the stick
horizontally into the playpen
through the vertical bars. After failing a number of times, a bit
of trial-and-error led to her
tilting the stick in such a way that it fit through. After she
achieved success, the next time the
stick was presented she pulled it through almost at once (Piaget
2006 [1953], pp. 305–307).
Substage 6: Mental Representation (18–24 months) Toward
the latter half of the sec-
ond year, children begin to construct internal depictions of
objects and events. They are then
able to imitate behaviors many hours or days after they were
observed initially. For instance,
children remember how to throw a tantrum after observing one
at a party. This emergence of
deferred imitation shows that children must have some kind of
internal mental representa-
tion for images and behaviors.
Piaget demonstrated this substage with the playpen-and-stick
problem, at which Jacqueline
first failed. With his two younger children, Piaget waited until
18 months before present-
ing the problem so that there would not be any practice effects.
In both cases, the younger
children bypassed the trial-and-error that was typical of
Jacqueline when she was younger.
Instead, they contemplated the problem and subsequently
brought the stick into the playpen
without much difficulty (Piaget, 2006 [1953]). The children
were able to succeed because
they had mentally combined objects and made internal
representations in such a way that
allowed mental rotation of the shapes.

Preoperational Stage
Thought and cognition develop out of the interaction of the
developing brain and experiences
in the world. In the sensorimotor stage, infants transition from a
focus on their own bodies to
an orientation on the world. At birth they have no internal
representation of people, objects,
or events; by the end of the sensorimotor period, they can
imitate actions that they were
exposed to days earlier. These cognitive advancements mark the
transition to the preopera-
tional stage, Piaget’s second stage, which lasts from about age 2
until about age 7.
Preoperational means that children do
not yet perform logical, reversible men-
tal actions called operations. Instead, this
growth period is marked by an extraordi-
nary advancement in mental representa-
tion. This increase is demonstrated most
noticeably by imaginary play and the rapid
increase in language. Children begin to rep-
resent schemas by images or words, what
Piaget called symbols, or symbolic repre-
sentation. Make-believe play and language
help children understand the world through
mental structures, including images and
objects that are not present. For instance,
they play dress-up, make cities out of blocks,
and set up house using plastic toys. A wood block may serve as

a make-believe telephone; a
plastic plate can be imagined as a steering wheel.
Piaget believed that language demonstrated the most efficient
use of symbolic representa-
tion. Words are used for thinking, as when children plan, which
also demonstrates an under-
standing of the past, present, and future. Words can also be used
to combine images and
actions that have not been imagined before, like flying over the
zoo while holding on to helium
balloons. Creative play also uses many symbols. Leaves become
pancakes in a make-believe
kitchen. A box is a house; dolls represent people having
breakfast. When children use these
symbols, they are thinking in a more sophisticated manner,
since the real objects are missing.
This stage is also characterized by inadequate use of logic,
primarily because children view
things from only one perspective. That is, they have difficulty
separating their thoughts and
ideas from another person’s perspective. Children assume others
have the same physical per-
spectives and mental thoughts as they do, even though it may
not be logical to adults. Piaget
called this lack of dimensional thinking, egocentrism. For
instance, children are not capable
of understanding that loud noises can bother others, when
banging pots and pans is so much
fun. Or, if you ask them over the telephone, “What do you see?”
preschoolers will sometimes
reply, “That” to indicate what only they see. They are not
capable of adjusting their percep-
tions to incorporate the views of others. When ocean waves are
set to destroy their carefully

constructed sand castles, toddlers may believe that the waves
are specifically out to get them.
Another feature of egocentrism is animism. It refers to children
believing that all objects are
alive, that they have consciousness. For instance, children may
interact with teddy bears as if
they have feelings. A broken toy might be “sick.” A table or toy
that caused an injury should be
punished because it was hurtful. Animism is representative of
egocentrism because children
assume that teddy bears, tables, and other objects can feel pain
and experience emotions, just
like them.
Piaget theorized that part of the limitation in preoperational
thinking is due to what he called
centration, the process of limiting attention to only one
characteristic in any given situa-
tion. Unlike older children and adults, young children may be
incapable of simultaneously
David Woolley/Digital Vision/Thinkstock
ሁ Toward the end of the sensorimotor stage,
children use symbolic representation.
considering two different aspects of a problem. Instead,
preoperational children center on
only one problem or aspect of communication at a time. For
instance, if two equal amounts of
liquid look different, children will think they are different

amounts. A preschool (preopera-
tional) child may complain about running out of paint if it is
contained in a large bottle. But if
it is transferred and completely fills a small plastic cup, they
will be satisfied.
Centration was demonstrated most famously by tasks involving
conservation, the aware-
ness that changing the appearance of a substance does not
change properties like mass, num-
ber, or volume. In a task of conservation of liquid, children are
presented with two equal-
sized beakers and confirm that they contain the same amount of
colored liquid. They are
then instructed to pour one of the beakers into a taller, thinner
container. When they are
later asked which beaker contains “more,” preoperational
children will identify the taller con-
tainer. Theoretically, they are focusing their attention on only
the height of the taller liquid in
the thinner beaker (centration). Children also demonstrate a lack
of conservation when they
answer that a number of spread-out coins represents “more”
than the same number of coins
bunched together. In addition to volume and number, children
also show lack of conservation
of substance (e.g., different shapes of the same amount of clay),
length, and area.
Piaget and Inhelder (1969) devised the “Three Mountains Task”
to observe egocentricity
and to find out when children decenter, or become able to
consider problems from multiple
points of view. As shown in Figure 7.1, children were presented
with a set of plaster moun-
tains. A doll was then placed on a side of the platform different

from where the child was
sitting. Piaget and Inhelder then asked the participants to
choose the photo that showed the
doll’s view. At age 4, children always pointed to photos that
represented their own perspective
rather than the doll’s view; at age 7, children correctly chose
the doll’s view, demonstrating a
disappearance of egocentric thought. They had advanced from a
stage of limited perspective
to one that included another person’s point of view. When
children begin to use organized,
logical mental processes, they engage in operations, the next
step in Piaget’s model.
Figure 7.1: Piaget’s Three Mountains Task
ሁ Piaget and Inhelder showed children a model of three
mountains. The three mountains were
distinguished by a snowcap, a small shack, and a cross.
Children were asked to pick out the
photograph that showed the view from the perspective of a doll
sitting, for instance, at position C,
while the child sat at a different position. Preoperational
children were not able to see the perspective
of the doll, whereas older children were able to do so.
A. Child seated here
C. Doll seated here
D. B.
Source: Adapted from Piaget, 1967.

Concrete Operations
The next stage of Piaget’s cognitive theory is characterized by a
shift into logical thinking,
which includes the organization of physical objects. Abstract
thinking, like analyzing various
outcomes of a potential risky activity, is still out of reach.
Although children at this stage can
repeat hypothetical outcomes to which they have been exposed
or told about, they cannot
organize multiple possibilities on their own. A number of new
capabilities announce a shift in
thinking, including reversibility, classification, and transitivity.
Reversibility
When children begin to decenter, they move into the stage of
concrete operations. This stage
lasts from about age 7 to age 11 and is characterized by the
logical rules of operations. For
instance, in the liquid conservation task, it is logical that
pouring liquid between contain-
ers does not change the volume. Unlike preoperational children,
elementary school children
know that objects can change shape and form and still remain
the same mass or volume.
Children at this stage know that a ball of clay that has been
rolled into a long rope is the same
clay, just transformed. They understand that the rope can be
reversed back into a ball. Simi-
larly, children now understand that the liquid poured from a
short, wide beaker into a tall,
thin beaker remains the same. Without actually pouring it back
into the wide beaker, children
know the amount of liquid has not changed. This kind of
advancement in conceptual abilities

is known as the process of reversibility, the ability to mentally
reverse operations.
Classification
Preoperational children as young as 2 years old can categorize
shape, size, or function quite
well, but it is not until children reach concrete operations that
they understand how to sub-
group. For instance, when presented with a group of canines,
most of which are domesticated
dogs but which also includes a few coyotes, wolves, and foxes,
preoperational children would
be able to classify the animals. However, when asked to name
the largest group, preopera-
tional children will most often say that the largest group is
dogs, not canines. The aware-
ness of classification hierarchies and the ability to understand
the relationship between the
general category of canines and specific subcategories of dogs,
coyotes, wolves, and foxes are
important advancements into the logic of concrete operational
thought. The ability to sort
using complex classification systems further demonstrates that
thought is guided by logic.
Cognitive growth also occurs as children move beyond
egocentrism and gain the ability to
see things from multiple perspectives. For instance,
preoperational children can represent
objects by drawing them, but unlike their younger counterparts,
concrete operational chil-
dren can imagine what objects look like and can draw them
from different angles.
Transitivity
Just as concrete operational children can imagine objects from

different orientations, they
also begin to mentally order items along a quantitative
dimension, like height, weight, or size.
This is called seriation. To test for it, Piaget presented three
sticks of different sizes, showing
that stick A was longer than stick B and stick B was longer than
stick C, as shown in Figure
7.2. Concrete operational children make the mental inference
that A is longer than C, whereas
preoperational children do not. This ability to mentally seriate
by logic is called transitivity
(or transitive inference). It is the ability to infer how two items
relate without explicitly
comparing them to each other. Classification and seriation are
similar in that children need to
simultaneously integrate three or more properties of stimuli.
Figure 7.2: Transitive inference
ሁ Mental interference is demonstrated by transitivity problems.
Children are given information that
stick A is longer than stick B and stick B is longer than stick C.
Concrete operational children make the
mental inference that A is longer than C, whereas
preoperational children do not.
A. B. B. C.
Formal Operations
Whereas concrete thinkers base conclusions on what makes the
most logical sense, at about 12

years of age, children and adolescents begin to think abstractly.
They now hypothesize about
various outcomes instead of relying exclusively on previous
experiences. According to Piaget,
they make inferences about what might or could be (including
using multiple variables) in a
process called hypothetico-deductive reasoning. They
hypothesize about different factors
that can affect outcomes. Piaget called this kind of advanced
thinking formal operations. It is
the first time that formal logic, or the ability
to make inferences, appears. It begins dur-
ing adolescence and continues into adult-
hood. Adolescents can now hypothesize,
combine complicated plans, and accurately
predict outcomes. Complex ideas like “love”
and values are not just repeated concepts,
as in the concrete stage, but are abstractly
constructed using multiple sources.
This change is a distinct contrast to the ear-
lier logic of concrete thinking. Specific expe-
riences are not necessary to form conclu-
sions. For instance, formal thinkers are able
to ponder what might be the best qualities
in a person even if they have not had any
experience with those characteristics. It
Michael Svoboda/iStock/Thinkstock
ሁ Adolescence is marked by an increase in risk-
taking behavior.

follows also that there is a tendency toward (abstract) idealistic
thinking, as well, because in
some ways, for the first time, possibilities are endless. When
reality is not consistent with ide-
alistic thoughts, though, frustration is often a byproduct. For
instance, teenagers often want
complete autonomy and decision-making abilities, because they
“know” that they can make
the right choices. However, conscientious adults continue to set
limits on behavior, which
sometimes results in adolescent frustration.
A C T I V I T Y
Play “20 Questions” and ask the participant to find “something
in a typical house.” You can
only answer yes or no. Play with an adult and then a child who
has clearly not reached for-
mal operations. How will the different people respond?
The advancement in thinking can explain in part why
adolescents have more conflicts with
their parents. Younger children may not like rules, but for the
most part they “understand”
the logic of them (even if the “logic” is an unrelated
consequence) and will comply when suf-
ficiently motivated. By contrast, teenagers can make alternative
arguments because they can
simultaneously weigh alternative outcomes. For instance, a 9
year old will comply with the
demand to complete homework before dinner if that is what the
rules of the house dictate.
However, 14 year olds may become obstinate and want to make
their own rules. If teenagers

simply refuse to do their homework before dinner, what is the
worst that might happen? No
dinner? “Fine.” No privileges? “Fine.” The abstract thinker
understands that parents do not
always have the ability (or will) to force compliance.
Figure 7.3a: Concrete versus formal operational thinking
ሁ These cards can demonstrate the difference between concrete
and formal operations. They are
from a set that has numbers on one side and letters on the other.
The rule is, “If a card has a vowel on
one side, then it has an even number on the other.” Which cards
need to be turned over in order to
determine if the rule is true? Not every formal operational child
or adult will be able to get the correct
answer, but concrete operational children almost surely will not.
E M 2 5
The answer can be found in Figure 7.3b.
http://www.ehow.com/how_13517_play-20-questions.html
Figure 7.3b: Answer to Figure 7.3a
ሁ Both the “E” and the “5” cards need to be turned. It is a
more abstract concept to understand that
a vowel cannot be on the reverse of the “5.” There does not
need to be a vowel on the reverse of the
“2” because the rule is that vowels have an even number, not
that even numbers have vowels.

6 M 2 F
F O C U S O N B E H A V I O R : U n d e r s t a n d i n g P i
a g e t
Shaffer (1973) devised a simple experiment to demonstrate the
difference between con-
crete operations and formal operations. He instructed a group of
9-year-old fourth graders
and a group of 11- to 12-year-old sixth graders to complete the
following:
Suppose that you were given a third eye and that you could
choose to place this eye any-
where on your body. Draw me a picture to show where you
would place your “extra” eye,
and then tell me why you would put it there.
Every 9-year-old concrete operator drew the third eye between
the two natural eyes. In
addition, many of them found the assignment uninteresting. On
the other hand, the chil-
dren approaching formal operations enjoyed the task much
more. Their responses were
much more inventive, too. Abstract thinkers looked for
hypothetical advantages rather
than attempting to re-create what they had seen previously in
media. One child drew an
eye on his palm so that he could see around corners. Another
drew a rotating eye protrud-
ing from the top of his head.
The images below were drawn by children of the author’s
students in a re-creation of
Shaffer’s experiment.
Courtesy of Ron Mossler

ሁ In the drawing by a 9 year old (left), the third eye is placed
in the middle of the forehead,
“so he could see better.” In the drawing by a 12 year old (right),
the third eye is placed on the
palm, so “he can look around everywhere without moving his
head.”
Adolescent Egocentrism
Formal operations give rise to another type of change. More
than concrete thinkers and
older adults, teenagers develop (1) a sense of uniqueness and
(2) heightened feelings of self-
consciousness. David Elkind (1976) maintains that these
thoughts can be characterized as
adolescent egocentrism. This kind of thinking leads to the
personal fable, in which adoles-
cents come to view themselves as uniquely controlled by their
own devices, corresponding to
an inflated sense of self-importance. Consequently, ado-
lescents are more likely to engage in dangerous activi-
ties like unprotected sex, street racing, or car surfing,
believing in their own invulnerability, or that nothing
bad can happen. They often view their feelings as par-
ticularly special. These distortions can produce negative
self-worth, too, as when depressed teens think, “Nobody
understands what I am going through” (Alberts, Elkind,
& Ginsberg, 2007).
In addition, because abstract thinkers can hypothesize about the
future and reflect on their
own thinking process (a concept described in more detail in

Module 8), they may be overly
concerned about what others are thinking about them.
Adolescents may believe that behav-
iors and appearance are scrutinized more publicly than they
actually are, from the one pimple
that has emerged recently to the few hairs that might be out of
place. Elkind says this behav-
ior reflects an imaginary audience, according to which
adolescents inaccurately view them-
selves as the focus of everyone’s attention.
F O C U S O N B E H A V I O R : A d o l e s c e n t E g o c e
n t r i s m
To demonstrate the personal fable to my undergraduate
students, I ask them who they
think are better drivers, the (mostly) 17–25 year olds sitting in
class or drivers who are
older than 50. Invariably, the majority name themselves as
better drivers, even though
insurance companies have piles of data that show otherwise.
And student reactions gen-
erally reinforce the idea of adolescent egocentrism, as they will
often dismiss the data as
inaccurate or insist it does not apply to them.
Describe Piaget’s stages of development, including the six
sensorimotor substages, preop-
erations, concrete operations, and formal operations.
Evaluation of Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development
Piaget’s ideas have contributed to a wealth of discussion and
research into cognitive develop-
ment. Perhaps the most common criticism is Piaget’s idea that
development occurs in four

discrete, discontinuous stages (Kellman & Arterberry, 2006). By
contrast, the preponderance
Critical Thinking
Speculate on ways in which Elkind’s ideas about
adolescent egocentrism integrate with what we
know about brain development, as discussed in
Section 5.3.
of evidence shows that in most Western cultures, gains in
cognitive development emerge
fairly consistently according to age. Along with other
influential figures, like Maria Montessori
(introduced in Module 15), these findings are one reason that
some educational programs
promote learning through personal discovery. Because Piaget
was able to demonstrate that
maturation is a strong determinant in cognitive development,
ordinary intellectual stimula-
tion will lead to cognitive advancement, just like physical
growth springs forth from normal
physical opportunities. More sophisticated opportunities in
either domain lead to greater
developmental enhancement.
Research has also suggested that culture can play an important
role in the advancement of
stages. Attainment of conservation varies widely among cultures
in Australia, New Guinea,
and Senegal. Experiences have been found to affect the timing
and length of stages as well
as the order and rate at which some operations are attained

(Gauvain & Perez, 2007; Mis-
try, Contreras, & Dutta, 2012). For instance, transferring farm
produce from one container to
another has been shown to accelerate the understanding of
volume conservation. And Mexi-
can children from a village of pottery-makers learn conservation
of mass (clay rolled into a
long thin piece has the same mass and volume as the original
ball) before conservation of
number. The reverse is true for children who are in formal
education in the United States.
These studies appear to show that experiences can affect the
course of cognitive development
(Dasen, 1977, 1984; Greenfield, 1966; Price-Williams, Gordon,
& Ramierez, 1969).
In addition, substantial evidence indicates that many adults
never reach Piaget’s stage of for-
mal operations. Among people in some cultures, there are
virtually no adults who can solve
standard problems that are used to test for formal operations
(Kuhn & Franklin, 2006; McDon-
ald & Stuart-Hamilton, 2003; Neimark, 1975). Therefore,
Piaget’s focus on stages may be cul-
turally biased and dependent on relevant knowledge and skills,
especially formal schooling
(Neimark, 1979).
Indeed, in one study, about half of college students who
majored in physics, political sci-
ence, or English were found to be deficient in formal operations
if the problem was outside
their major area of expertise. In contrast, 80–90% attained
formal operations when the task
matched their field (De Lisi & Staudt, 1980). Perhaps cognitive
development is either more

continuous or is influenced by experience to a greater extent
than Piaget thought (Cole, 2006;
Kuhn & Franklin, 2006). Although this research was conducted
with college students, it is
reasonable to assume that the differences were consistent with
cumulative experience. That
is, it is unlikely that college students regressed to concrete
thinking after entering college.
Just like the specific deficiencies found among college students,
others have suggested that
overall Piaget focused on what children cannot do, rather than
on what they can. Perhaps with
the right design or motivation, children will perform better than
expected (Flavell, Flavell,
& Green, 1983; Gelman, 2006; Gelman & Kalish, 2006).
Although Piaget’s pioneering obser-
vations have accurately showcased the qualitative changes in
cognition, they may have led
him to underestimate capabilities. For instance, Piaget theorized
that object permanence, a
centerpiece of the sensorimotor period, does not develop until
substage 5, when children
are at least a year old. Creative experiments show this
conclusion to be too narrow. In one
study, children between the ages of 1 and 4 months were first
shown interesting objects, and
then the lighting was turned off. Although the objects were no
longer visible to the children,
infrared cameras discovered that the infants continued to search
for them. This experiment
demonstrated that children may indeed be aware of objects after
they “disappear,” perhaps
for as long as 90 seconds (Bower & Wishart, 1972).

Section 7.2Sociocultural Theory
In general, Piaget fell short of accurately describing the entire
course of cognitive develop-
ment, including his focus on stages rather than continuity.
Nevertheless, Piaget’s theories
have had a profound impact on our understanding of how
children learn. His unprecedented
descriptions of how understanding and the use of logic in
reasoning unfold gradually have
withstood the rigor of thousands of research investigations.
What are the major contributions and criticisms of Piaget’s
theory?
7.2 Sociocultural Theory
As introduced in Module 1, a second influential theory of
cognitive development places greater
importance on the setting in which learning takes place. Lev
Vygotsky’s sociocultural theory
of cognition views development as a continuous process that is
dependent on a child’s social
and cultural experiences (Vygotsky, 1978). Because learning
does not take place in a vacuum,
development is embedded within society and culture. Therefore,
understanding the context
in which a child lives contributes to knowledge about how
development occurs.
Think about the many differences in context that are possible
for a single child living with a
single mother. Consider 7-year-old Anthony, who lives in an
apartment, attends after-school
care until 6:00 p.m., and spends his weekends watching

television and playing video games,
while his mother takes care of the chores that overwhelm her on
the weekend. His mother
has little opportunity to expand her social resources since she
can barely get in enough time
for herself.
Down the street lives 7-year-old Brandon. He lives with his
mother and her extended family
of uncles, aunts, and grandparents. He is walked home after
school to a house full of people.
There are relatives cooking, playing, writing on a computer,
doing homework, and talking.
Anthony and Brandon experience different levels of interaction,
have different family lives,
and experience markedly different sources of influence.
According to their individual con-
texts, they learn tasks that each of their subcultures values. It
could be play, homework, adult
interaction, bicycle riding, or drug use.
Potential distinctions become more explicit when looking at
historical differences or compar-
ing, say, a child from a poor farming village in Peru with a
child from a technologically rich
part of South Korea. In the United States, children entering
kindergarten today have differ-
ent tools (and consequently, demands) than current college
students had when they were
in kindergarten. For instance, even one generation ago, it was
unusual for young children to
have easy access to computer technology. Now, as today’s
children explore various screen
technologies, they necessarily learn to think differently than in
the past in order to navigate
that part of their world. Screen tasks that sometimes prove a

challenge for older people are
second nature for many young learners. This historical change
influences the ways that chil-
dren approach learning and problem solving.
Social Constructivism
The changing use of technology by young children demonstrates
how they construct knowl-
edge based on society and culture. Both Piaget and Vygotsky
agreed that children actively
construct their world, but they differed in the context in which
it occurs. While Piaget empha-
sized the solitary nature of learning through exploration,
Vygotsky theorized that social inter-
action was essential to normal cognitive development. From a
Piagetian model, it would be
predicted that Anthony and Brandon would show
many similarities in thought. By contrast, Vygotsky
would point to the vastly different social variables
that can affect their development.
These influences go beyond having more supervi-
sion or people to talk to. They include the availabil-
ity of resources like books, siblings, parents, teach-
ers, and other opportunities and experts. That is,
cognition advances when children interact cultur-
ally and linguistically. Speech and written language,
manners, gaming, and cooking skills are all cogni-
tive processes that develop within cultural groups
in combination with individual social interactions.
According to Vygotsky, adults and peer partners

provide motivation and essential assistance, which
results in intellectual growth through the use of
questions and discussion.
Therefore, whereas Piaget felt that cognitive devel-
opment was constructed by children’s individual
experiences in the world, Vygotsky focused on the
essential nature of social experiences. That is, in
sociocultural theory cognitive development is constructed by
the social context and guided by
more experienced members of society. According to Vygotsky,
children play an active role in
their cognitive development as they learn through the social and
cultural “tools” (like language,
tablets, farm equipment, and pencils) to which they are exposed
(Bodrova & Leong, 2001).
(Hence, Vygotsky’s theory is sometimes referred to as social-
constructivism.) For instance,
reading is a relatively recent development in human history.
More experienced adults facil-
itate higher-level thinking in children through reading
instruction and exposure to books.
After being introduced to reading through established
cultural tools of instruction, children become indepen-
dent readers. Modeling and other reading experiences
shape (or construct) how individuals learn and behave.
Reading is first a social experience and then transitions
to one that is individual. Whereas Piaget was a cognitive
constructivist (mentally forming schemas), Vygotsky
was a social constructivist.
Zone of Proximal Development and Scaffolding
Like learning to read, children first attempt to solve problems
within a social context and

then do so independently. Vygotsky described this change from
collaborative to independent
Fuse/Thinkstock
ሁ According to sociocultural theory,
cognitive development is dependent on
social interaction and culture, including
such factors as manners, customs, and
values.
Critical Thinking
In recent years, there has been increasing
emphasis on collaborative learning in schools.
Explain how Vygotsky’s theory supports this
development.
learning as a goal of education, and a more sophisticated kind
of cognition (Vygotsky, 1978).
Children who initially demonstrate less skill may not be less
intellectual. They may simply
have a larger potential range of growth. Therefore, instead of
focusing on the tasks that chil-
dren have learned, Vygotsky was more interested in what
children are capable of learning.
Vygotsky called this gap between skills (and knowledge) and
the potential for learning the
zone of proximal development (ZPD) (see Figure 7.4). The ZPD
refers to the range of activi-
ties that a child cannot perform alone but is capable of
accomplishing with the assistance of a
higher-skilled adult or peer. This higher-skilled person is often

referred to in research as the
more knowledgeable other (MKO).
Figure 7.4: The zone of proximal development
ሁ The zone of proximal development refers to the range of
knowledge and skills that a child cannot
learn alone but is able to accomplish with the assistance of a
more skilled peer or adult.
Zo
ne
of
proxim
al development
k
n
o
w
le
d
g
e
a
n
d
skills that can be learned
wi

th
as
si
st
an
c
e
f
ro
m
o
th
e
rs
Child’s
demonstrated
skill
Currently unobtain
able
Source: Adapted from Vygotsky (1962).
For a child to learn a task within the ZPD, the MKO provides
support. With guided assistance,
children acquire more knowledge and skill even as the task
becomes more complex. The
amount of assistance from teachers or more experienced peers

during the early stages of
learning diminishes gradually as students master skills and
develop more sophisticated cog-
nitive abilities. In this way the social environment, especially
language, is critical as children
learn to navigate more on their own. The
process of support for learning is called
scaffolding, a fancy term that in its simplest
form refers to adults or peers who provide
guided assistance. Though scaffolding was
not one of Vygotsky’s terms, it has become
an integral part of social-constructivism
theory. It epitomizes how the transition
from shared learning to independence is
facilitated.
Vygotsky’s concept of a ZPD has provided a
new way of looking at cognitive capabilities
and individual differences in learning. And
scaffolding has reached into popular vocab-
ulary to represent many types of collabo-
ration and guidance that raise a receiver’s
level of performance. The pitfalls of scaffolding include
adults who may be too helpful and thereby reinforce
children to ask for help even when tasks can be com-
pleted without assistance.
Learning in Context
It is apparent then that sociocultural theory emphasizes the
importance of social interaction

in order to facilitate individual achievement. In that regard,
every society has areas of intellec-
tual emphasis. For instance, in the United States, society
stresses the importance of preschool
and playgroups. These social activities provide opportunities for
specific kinds of intellectual
growth. Engaging in “Circle Time” has meaning beyond just
singing or reading books. There
is order, collaboration, and social structure (teacher as leader),
reflecting important parts of
society. Subcultures like farmers in Iowa, Orthodox Jews in
New York, and Mexican Ameri-
cans in Los Angeles all provide specific kinds of learning
opportunities embedded within a
social context.
According to Vygotsky, children remember information that is
consistent with what the social
and cultural setting provides. Incremental progressions in
thought are specified by cultural
context. Therefore, certain forms of thinking and problem
solving are intricately tied in with
the context in which development occurs. For instance, 3 year
olds begin to recite the alpha-
bet in a singsong manner only after their preschool teacher has
exposed them to it repeatedly.
Similarly, memory of specific tasks in school is related to the
demands of the culture and,
ultimately, teachers. Some children may learn that orderliness is
an essential trait, while oth-
ers may have a freer environment that promotes creativity.
Children have to transition from
learning what teachers present to “learning how to learn.” Or as
Bodrova and Leong (2001)
state, children need to “take in a teacher’s plan and make it
[their] own” (p. 10). Either way,

children will learn as a function of what the environment has
delivered.
Because cognitive development is a social enterprise, children
learn through collabora-
tion. When schoolchildren work in groups, they learn
cooperative learning strategies while
monkeybusinessimages/iStock/Thinkstock
ሁ From a Vygotskian perspective, adults need
to scaffold tasks that are within a child’s zone of
proximal development.
Critical Thinking
How does social-constructivism inf luence how
literacy is promoted in education?
increasing their ability to perform challenging tasks. These
methods have been found to be
quite effective, compared to control groups that used
traditional, standardized instruction.
However, in these kinds of comparisons, experimental groups
are also often given more
resources and teaching methods are scrutinized more highly
than is typical; teachers usually
know they are part of a research design, likely leading to a
desire to perform well (Bodrova &
Leong, 2001). Therefore, though collaboration is likely to be
effective, its true value might be
overstated within a research environment.

Sociocultural theory may also help to explain some gender
differences. For instance, when
teachers speak more gently to girls than boys, it may lead to
more acting out and lower
academic performance among boys (Hughes, Wu, Kwok,
Villarreal, & Johnson, 2012; Sil-
ver, Measelle, Armstrong, & Essex, 2005). Perhaps differences
in scientific ability between
males and females originate from the way culture and society
approach boys versus girls.
Indeed, one study found that parents give more sophisticated
explanations to boys than
to girls during visits to a museum (Crowley, Callaman,
Tenebaum, & Allen, 2001). The cul-
tural context may promote differences in the kinds of
knowledge to which each of the sexes
is exposed.
Evaluation of Vygotsky’s Theory of Cognitive Development
In contrast to the Piagetian model, sociocultural theory does not
address maturational pro-
cesses, even though the thinking of younger and older children
appear to be qualitatively dif-
ferent. Similarly, the theory does not address why younger
children cannot think abstractly
even when scaffolding is provided. Although intuitively it
makes sense that children would
be more successful when cognitive support is provided, the
influence of the coinciding emo-
tional support needs to be considered as well (Leerkes,
Blankson, O’Brien, Calkins, & Marco-
vitch, 2011). One way or another, the process of scaffolding
seems to be an important part
of learning.
Though Vygotsky failed to fully explain cognitive development,

evidence-based conclusions
support the continued implementation of his ideas in schools
and businesses. Certainly socio-
cultural theory has yielded greater appreciation of the complex
social and cultural nature
of learning and cognitive development, which has been applied
extensively in educational
settings. Piaget’s emphasis on self-exploration leading to the
discovery of knowledge is also
used widely in education. The major difference remains in how
individual knowledge is con-
structed initially. Whereas Vygotsky emphasized social
construction, Piaget emphasized cog-
nitive construction. Despite these differences, both theories
emphasize the need for experi-
enced adults and peers to provide guidance rather than specific
standards and activities (see
Table 7.2).
Explain how cognitive development occurs, from a sociocultural
perspective.
Summary and Resources
Table 7.2: A comparison of the major features of the theories of
Jean Piaget
and Lev Vygotsky
Concept Piaget Vygotsky
Constructivism Cognitive constructivism; children
construct knowledge independently

Social constructivism; children con-
struct knowledge through social and
cultural settings
Course of development Universal stages Variable, depending on
values and
tools of culture
Context Strong individual Strong sociocultural
Source of development Age/maturation; an emphasis
that nature provides for cognitive
development
The environment and social interac-
tion; an emphasis that nurture pro-
vides for cognitive development
Individual differences Little emphasis Moderately strong
emphasis
Role of teachers Facilitates and provides opportuni-
ties to explore the world
Facilitates by scaffolding; provides
opportunities with MKOs
Key terms Discontinuous
Assimilation
Accommodation
Schema
Equilibration
Operations
Stages
Continuous

More knowledgeable other (MKO)
Scaffolding
Zone of proximal development (ZPD)
Wrapping Up and Moving On
Both Piaget and Vygotsky believed that children actively
construct their understanding of
the world. Both theories postulate that children build knowledge
out of experience. Piaget
felt that children maintain an independent, natural pursuit of
knowledge by acting on the
environment. By contrast, Vygotsky argued that development is
largely the result of the social
construct, including language, social resources, and immediate
culture. Next we look at the
third major theory of cognitive development: information-
processing.
• Jean Piaget’s stage theory and Lev Vygotsky’s
sociocultural theory represent two of
the three major theories of cognitive development. Though
inconsistent at times,
they share a constructivist point of view.
• Piaget’s influence has inspired a wealth of research on
intellectual development. He
introduced the idea of a cognitive structure, called a schema,
into which experiences
are organized.
• Children attain cognitive growth through the processes of
assimilation and accom-
modation. Children try to maintain a balance between
assimilation and accommoda-

tion, a process Piaget called cognitive equilibration.
• Sensorimotor development is the first of four Piagetian
stages of cognitive develop-
ment. Children rely on their senses and actions to learn about
themselves and how
the world operates. Because of the rapid growth during this
stage, Piaget broke it
up into six substages. Each of the substages has characteristic
changes in behavior,
which represent different capacities for the development of
thinking.
• During the preoperational stage, thought is dominated by
the growth of mental
representation, but children are limited by their dependence on
appearance and
egocentrism. These limitations are reflected in children’s failure
to grasp the concept
of conservation and immature classification skills.
• When children begin to decenter, marked by Piaget’s
famous experiments with con-
servation, they have reached the stage of concrete operations.
This development also
coincides with other advanced thought like reversibility and
seriation.
• Piaget’s final stage, formal operations, begins during
adolescence. This stage is char-
acterized by abstract thought, including the use of hypothetico-

deductive reasoning.
• Vygotsky theorized that cognitive development is
mediated by social interaction.
Children internalize the actions of their culture by participation.
The context for
learning contributes to individual growth.
• The zone of proximal development focuses on the tasks a
child cannot perform alone
but could with assistance. Therefore, it focuses on the potential
of children rather
than on what they already know.
• Although not a term coined by Vygotsky, scaffolding has
become closely linked with
his theory and teachings.
• Collaborative learning is another hallmark of how
Vygotsky’s theory has been
applied. Scaffolding and group work are now common
occurrences throughout
schools and businesses.
• Sociocultural theory fails to fully explain limitations in
more advanced think-
ing among young children. Piaget explains that cognitive
immaturity is due to an
absence of biological maturation.
Key Terms
accommodation The modification of an
existing schema or the construction of a new
schema to fit changing awareness of reality.
adolescent egocentrism A thought process

in which adolescents display an elevated
sense of invulnerability (personal fable) and
self-consciousness (imaginary audience).
animism Piaget’s term that refers to the
belief that all objects are alive and have
consciousness.
assimilation The interpretation of new
objects, events, or actions within an existing
schema.
centration The cognitively limiting process
of centering attention on only one character-
istic of a situation.
classification The ability to group objects
based on common features.
concrete operations The third of Piaget’s
four stages of cognitive development; char-
acterized by the advancement in the use of
logic.
conservation The understanding that a
change in appearance does not change the
properties of an object.
decenter The change from an egocentric
perspective to one that considers more than
one aspect of a problem.
deferred imitation The ability to imitate
behaviors observed at a previous time.
disequilibration When children experi-

ence relatively more accommodation than
assimilation; results in a natural motivation
for learning.
disequilibrium When external reality is
inconsistent with existing cognitive struc-
tures (schemas).
egocentrism Thinking based on one’s own
perspective, not another person’s.
equilibration The mechanism by which
children attempt to strike a balance between
assimilation and accommodation.
equilibrium The drive to produce conso-
nance between cognitive structures (sche-
mas) and the environment.
formal operations The last of Piaget’s four
stages of cognitive development; character-
ized by an advancement in thought that is
abstract and hypothetical.
hypothetico-deductive reasoning The
capacity to think about multiple factors lead-
ing to multiple outcomes.
imaginary audience Part of adolescent ego-
centrism, when adolescents believe they are
“on stage” or that others are paying atten-
tion to them more than they actually are.

more knowledgeable other (MKO) A
higher-skilled person employed to provide
assistance within a child’s zone of proximal
development.
object permanence Awareness first
achieved during the sensorimotor stage of
development that indicates knowledge that
objects continue to exist even when there is
no perception of them.
operations Logical thought including
reversibility and the ability to perform men-
tal manipulations.
personal fable Part of Elkind’s concept of
adolescent egocentrism. Refers to the belief
of some adolescents that they are uniquely
invulnerable.
preoperational stage The second of Piag-
et’s four stages of cognitive development;
marked by an advancement in mental repre-
sentation and an absence of logic.
reversibility The ability to mentally
reverse operations. A characteristic change
that marks the stage of concrete operations.
scaffolding Guided assistance, or social
support for learning.
schema Piaget’s term for the mental repre-
sentation of actions, events, or phenomena.

In the information-processing theory of
cognitive development, it refers to a mental
structure in long-term memory that aids in
organization and retrieval of information.
sensorimotor stage The first of Piaget’s
four stages of cognitive development;
marked by infants gaining cognitive under-
standing primarily through their senses and
movements.
seriation The ability to order objects based
on a common property.
sociocultural theory of cognition
Vygotsky’s theory of cognitive development;
emphasizes the importance of social and
cultural context in learning.
stage theory of cognitive development
Piaget’s theory that views cognitive growth
as a qualitative change that occurs from
childhood through adolescence.
symbolic representation The mental capa-
bility to use symbols to represent objects.
transitive inference See transitivity.
transitivity (also transitive inference)
The ability to compare two objects based on
the property of a third.
zone of proximal development (ZPD) The
range of knowledge and skills that a child
cannot perform alone but is capable of

accomplishing with the assistance of a
higher-skilled adult or peer.
Web Resources
See links below for additional information on topics discussed
in the chapter.
Classification
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jzIx8lMIHo&NR=1
Hypothetico-Deductive Reasoning
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJyuy4B2aKU
Piaget
https://www.khanacademy.org/science/health-and-
medicine/executive%20
systems%20of%20the%20brain/cognition-2014-03-
27T18:40:04.738Z/v/
piagets-stages-of-cognitive-development
Reversibility
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gA04ew6Oi9M&feature=relat
ed
Task of Conservation of Liquid
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B65EJ6gMmA4
Vygotsky
https://www.khanacademy.org/test-prep/mcat/individuals-and-
society/

self-identity/v/vygotsky-sociocultural-development
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3jzIx8lMIHo&NR=1
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YJyuy4B2aKU
medicine/executive%20systems%20of%20the%20brain/cognitio
n-2014-03-27T18:40:04.738Z/v/piagets-stages-of-cognitive-
development
development
development
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gA04ew6Oi9M&feature=relat
ed
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B65EJ6gMmA4
society/self-identity/v/vygotsky-sociocultural-development
society/self-identity/v/vygotsky-sociocultural-development
ompare and Contrast the Theories of Piaget and Vygotsky
[WLOs: 1, 2] [CLOs: 1, 4]
Prior to completing this discussion, read Chapter 7 in your
textbook and Piaget’s Enduring Contribution to Developmental
Psychology article, and watch the Play: A Vygotskian approach
and Piaget’s Stages of Development (Links to an external site.)
Jean Piaget is probably the most influential theorist in the
cognitive development realm. His work has informed American

educational practices since the early 1900s. Another key
cognitive theorist in the realm is Lev Vygotsky. Interestingly,
Vygotsky and Piaget were contemporaries (both were born in
1896), but for many years, Piaget’s theory dominated. The fact
that Vygotsky died at age 37, while Piaget lived to be 84, might
be part of that explanation. But Vygotsky’s ideas gained
traction in the 1980s when educators began to question long
held Piagetian ideas. Nevertheless, both theories are important
to the study of cognitive development. In your initial post of
300 words minimum,
· Provide a brief overview of Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s child and
adolescent cognitive developmental theories.
· Compare and contrast these theories as they relate to child and
adolescent development by identifying at least one commonality
in the two theories and two major conceptual differences (Table
7.2 in your textbook will be useful here).
· Determine which of the two theories you most support and
provide a rationale for your choice.
Your discussion post must use at least one credible source.
[WLOs: 1, 2] [CLOs: 1, 4]
textbook and
Piaget’s Enduring
Contribution to D
evelopmental Psychology
article, and watch the
Play: A Vygotskian approach
and
Piaget’s Stages of Development

(Links to an external site.)
cognitive development realm. His
work has informed American edu
cational practices since the early 1900s. Another key cognitive
theorist in the realm is Lev Vygotsky. Interestingly, Vygotsky
and Piaget were contemporaries
(both were born in 1896), but for many years, Piaget’s theory
dominated. The fact that Vygotsky
di
ed at age 37, while Piaget lived to be 84, might be part of that
explanation. But Vygotsky’s
ideas gained traction in the 1980s when educators began to
question long held Piagetian ideas.
Nevertheless, both theories are important to the study of
cognitive
development. In your initial
post of 300 words minimum,
·
Provide a brief overview of Piaget’s and Vygotsky’s child and
adolescent cognitive
developmental theories.
·
Compare and contrast these theories as they relate to child and
adolescent development
by identifying at least one commonality in the two theories and
two major conceptual
differences (Table 7.2 in your textbook will be useful here).
·

Determine which of the
two theories you most support and provide a rationale for your
choice.
[WLOs: 1, 2] [CLOs: 1, 4]
textbook and Piaget’s Enduring
Contribution to Developmental Psychology article, and watch
the Play: A Vygotskian approach
and Piaget’s Stages of Development (Links to an external site.)
cognitive development realm. His
work has informed American educational practices since the
early 1900s. Another key cognitive
theorist in the realm is Lev Vygotsky. Interestingly, Vygotsky
and Piaget were contemporaries
(both were born in 1896), but for many years, Piaget’s theory
dominated. The fact that Vygotsky
died at age 37, while Piaget lived to be 84, might be part of that
explanation. But Vygotsky’s
ideas gained traction in the 1980s when educators began to
question long held Piagetian ideas.
Nevertheless, both theories are important to the study of
cognitive development. In your initial
post of 300 words minimum,
and adolescent cognitive
developmental theories.
and adolescent development
by identifying at least one commonality in the two theories and

two major conceptual
differences (Table 7.2 in your textbook will be useful here).
ich of the two theories you most support and
provide a rationale for your
choice.

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