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Name:
Jean Piaget
Dates:
Born: August 9, 1896 in Neuchatel, Switzerland
Died: September 16, 1980 in Geneva, Switzerland
Publishes first paper (at age 10): 1907
Biography:
Jean Piaget was a psychologist who focused his research on the cognitive
development, especially in children. Piaget is famous for explaining mental growth
in terms of four distinct stages - much of the research for this was actually done while
observing the growth of his own three children.
Up through the age of 2 is the "sensorimotor" stage, characterized by the development of basic motor control and the ability to identify objects in the surrounding world. From 2 through 7 is the "preoperational" stage, during which the child is concerned with developing verbal skills. At this time a child becomes able to use language with greater precision and variation. Between 7 and 12 is the "concrete operational" stage, during which a child learns how to deal with abstract concepts like numbers. The final stage is known as the "operational" stage, occurring between the ages of 12 and 15. This is characterized by the development of the ability to reason logically.
As a concrete illustration, stage one is the development of the ability to recognize the existence of a book and the ability to manipulate it; stage two is the development of the ability to read and understand the book; stage three is the development of greater ability to mentally manipulate the concepts contained in the book and abstract out of them ideas for use elsewhere; stage four involves the ability logically critique the ideas in the book.
Piaget's ideas became known as the Constructivist Theory of intellectual development, according to which a person gradually assimilates new information as part of the process of developing knowledge. Active learning is inherent in the human species - something we are all inclined to do and should be encouraged to develop.
Also Known As: psychical research
Alternate Spellings: none
Common Misspellings: none
Related Resources:
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