You may have heard of Jean Piaget’s theory of cognitive development, for which he is famous.
This theory looks athow children develop intellectuallythroughout the course of childhood.
At a Glance
Jean Piaget helped shape our foundational knowledge of childhood cognitive development.
Verhoeff, Bert / Anefo / National Archief / Wikimedia Commons / CC BY-SA 3.0
During this time, he published two essays that provided a foundation for his future thoughts and theories.
Personal Life
Piaget married Valentine Chatenay in 1923 and the couple went on to have three children.
Piaget’s observations of his own children served as the basis for many of his later theories.
From 1929 to 1967, he served as the Director of the International Bureau of Education in Geneva.
He also taught at the University of Geneva.
Piaget founded the International Center for Genetic Epistemology in 1955.
He died in 1980 and was buried in Geneva.
Piaget’s Career and Theories
Piaget had several ideas or theories about cognitive development throughout his career.
Roots of Knowledge
Piaget identified himself as a genetic epistemologist.
His early work with Binet’sintelligence testsled Piaget to conclude that children think differently than adults.
While this is a widely accepted notion today, it was considered revolutionary at the time.
It was this observation that inspired his interest in understanding how knowledge grows throughout childhood.
The following are a few of Piaget’s best-known works.
Piaget’s Contributions to Psychology
Piaget contributed to psychology in various ways.
His work also generated interest in cognitive and developmental psychology.
Piaget’s theories are widely studied today by students of both psychology and education.
His work contributed to our understanding of the cognitive development of children.
Piaget helped demonstrate that childhood is a unique and important period of human development.
In their 2005 text, “The Science of False Memory,” authors C.J.
Above all, however, he wasthedevelopmental psychologist of the 20th century.
Influence on Psychologists
Piaget’s work influenced other notable psychologists includingHoward GardnerandRobert Sternberg.
Influence on Education
Piaget’s work continues to influence education.
They are more or less isomorphic to transformations of reality.
Knowledge, then, is a system of transformations that become progressively adequate."
Children begin to develop language during the preoperational stage, according to Piaget’s theory.
Piaget defined egocentrism as a mindset that “vivifies the external world and materialises the internal world.
Larcher V.Children are not small adults: Significance of biological and cognitive development in medical practice.Handbook Philos Med.2015.
doi:10.1007/978-94-017-8706-2_16-1
University of Kentucky.Study ranks the top 20th century psychologists.
Piaget J.Genetic epistemology.Am Behav Sci.
1970;13(3):459-480. doi:10.1177/000276427001300320
APA Dictionary of Psychology.Piagetian theory.
Brainerd CJ, Reyna VF.The Science of False Memory.
doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195154054.001.0001
Shearer B.Multiple intelligences in teaching and education: Lessons learned from neuroscience.J Intell.
2018;6(3):38. doi:10.3390/jintelligence6030038
Sternberg RJ.Intelligence.Dialogues Clin Neurosci.
United Kingdom, Taylor & Francis, 2019.
APA Dictionary of Psychology.Genetic epistemology.
Kesselring T, Muller U.The concept of egocentrism in the context of Piaget’s theory.New Ideas Psychol.
2011;29(3):327-45. doi:10.1016/j.newideapsych.2010.03.008
Jean Piaget Society.About Jean Piaget.
