Jean Piaget: Theory of Cognitive Development

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Recommended: Theories of Cognitive Development

Throughout history, many people have made important contributions to the school of psychology. Jean Piaget was one who made a contribution with his theories on the cognitive development stages. Cognitive development is the process of acquiring intelligence and increasingly advanced thought and problem-solving ability from infancy to adulthood. Piaget states that the mind of a child develops through set stages to adulthood (Famous Biographies & TV Shows - Biography.com). The theory of cognitive development has made a significant impact throughout the history of psychology, and is still practiced and learned about today.

Jean Piaget was born on August 9, 1896 in Neuchâtel, Switzerland, and died on September 16, 1980 in Geneva (Famous Biographies & TV Shows - Biography.com). He studied zoology and philosophy at the University of Neuchâtel, receiving his doctorate in 1918 (Famous Biographies & TV Shows - Biography.com). However, he became interested in psychology, merging his biological training with his interest in epistemology, the theory of knowledge (Famous Biographies & TV Shows - Biography.com). Later, in 1919, he then began two years of study, taking courses in pathological psychology at the Sorbonne University in Paris (Famous Biographies & TV Shows - Biography.com). While Piaget was in Paris, he devised and administered reading tests to schoolchildren and became interested in the types of errors they made, leading him to explore the reasoning process in young children (Famous Biographies & TV Shows - Biography.com). He was so fascinated by what he found, he devoted the rest of his life to this subject (Isaacs 67).

Jean Piaget theorized that children’s thinking develops in four stages: sensorimotor, preoperational, conc...

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"Jean Piaget Quotes :: Quoteland :: Quotations by Author." Quoteland.com - Quotations on Every Topic, by Every Author, and in Every Fashion Possible. Quoteland.com. Web. 02 Oct. 2011. .

Meyerhoff, Michael K. "Perspectives on Parenting." Pediatrics for Parents 2007: 8-9. Health Source - Consumer Edition. Web. 01 Oct. 2011. .

Meyerhoff, Michael K. "The Mind of the Infant and Toddler." Pediatrics for Parents 1994: 8. Health Source - Consumer Edition. Web. 01 Oct. 2011. .

Rathus, Spencer A. "Infancy and Childhood." Psychology, Principles in Practice. Austin, [Tex.: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 1998. 242-46. Print.

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