Cognitive Development:
Piaget’s Theory and
Vygotsky’s Sociocultural
Viewpoint
How we gain knowledge: Piaget’s
Cognitive Processes

Adaptation is an inborn tendency to adjust to the
demands of the environment.
– The goal of adaptation is to adjust to the
environment; this occurs through assimilation and
accommodation.

Assimilation is the process of interpreting new
experiences by incorporating them into existing
schemes.
 Accommodation is the process of modifying existing
schemes in order to incorporate or adapt to new
experiences.
Piagetian Concept
Example
Equilibrium
Toddler who has never seen anything fly
but birds thinks that all flying objects are
birds
Assimilation
Seeing an airplane flying prompts the child
to call it a birdie
Start
Accommodation
Organization
Finish
Child experiences conflict upon realizing
that the new birdie has no feathers.
Concludes it is not a bird and asks for the
proper term or invents a name. Equilibrium
restored
Forms hierarchal scheme consisting of a
superordinate class (flying objects) and two
subordinate classes (birdies and airplanes).
Vygotsky’s Sociocultural
Perspective

Sociocultural theory states that:
– Cognitive development occurs in a
sociocultural context that influences the
form it takes
– Most of a child’s cognitive skills evolve from
social interactions with parents, teachers,
and other more competent associates
The role of culture in intellectual
development:

Vygotsky proposed that we should
evaluate human development from four
interrelated perspectives:
– Microgenetic-changes that occur over brief
periods of time-minutes and seconds
– Ontogenetic-development over a lifetime
– Phylogenetic-development over evolutionary
time
– Sociohistorical- changes that have occurred
in one's culture and the values, norms and
technologies such a history has generated
Tools of intellectual adaptation

Vygotsky (1930-1935/1978) proposed
that infants are born with a few
elementary mental functions – attention,
sensation, perception and memory – that
are eventually transformed by the
culture into new and more sophisticated
mental processes he called higher
mental functions.
The Social Origins of Early
Cognitive Competencies:

Zone of Proximal Development range of
tasks that are too complex to be
mastered alone but can be accomplished
with guidance and encouragement from
a more skillful partner
– Scaffolding- the expert participant carefully
tailors their support to the novice learner to
assure their understanding
The role of language in cognitive
development:

According to Piaget:
– Children partake in egocentric speech,
utterances neither directed to others nor
expressed in ways that the listeners might
understand
– Egocentric speech played a little role in
cognitive development
– Speech tended to become more social as
the child matures-less egocentric
The role of language in cognitive
development cont’d

According to Vygotsky:
– Thought and language eventually emerge
– A child’s nonsocial utterances, which he termed
private speech, illustrate the transition from
paralinguistic to verbal reasoning
– Private speech plays a major role in cognitive
development by serving as a cognitive self-guidance
system, allowing children to become more organized
and good problem solvers
– As individuals develop, private speech becomes inner
speech
Theories of Cognitive Development:
Vygotsky vs. Piaget
Vygotsky’s sociocultural Piaget’s cognitive
theory
developmental theory
Cognitive development varies
across cultures
Cognitive development is mostly
universal across cultures
Stems from social interactions
Stems from independent
explorations
Social processes become
individual-physiological processes
Individual (egocentric) processes
become social processes
Adults are important as change
agents
Peers are important as change
agents
Bell Ringer
What do you think the most sung karaoke
song is?
Erik Erikson: The LifeSpan Approach
Psychosocial Stages of Personality
Development
8 successive stages over the lifespan
Addresses bio, social, situational, personal
influences
 Crisis: must adaptively or maladaptively cope
with task in each developmental stage


– Respond adaptively: acquire strengths needed for
next developmental stage
– Respond maladaptively: less likely to be able to adapt
to later problems

Basic strengths: Motivating characteristics and
beliefs that derive from successful resolution of
crisis in each stage
Stage 1: Basic Trust vs. Mistrust
Birth to age 1
 Totally dependent on others
 Caregiver meets needs: child develops
trust
 Caregiver does not meet needs: child
develops mistrust
 Basic strength: Hope

– Belief our desires will be satisfied
– Feeling of confidence
Stage 2: Autonomy vs. Shame and
Doubt
Ages 1-3
 Child able to exercise some degree of
choice
 Child’s independence is thwarted: child
develops feelings of self-doubt, shame in
dealing with others
 Basic Strength: Will

– Determination to exercise freedom of choice
in face of society’s demands
Stage 3: Initiative vs. Guilt
Ages 3-5
 Child expresses desire to take initiative in
activities
 Parents punish child for initiative: child
develops feelings of guilt that will affect
self-directed activity throughout life
 Basic strength: Purpose

– Courage to envision and pursue goals
Stage 4: Industriousness vs.
Inferiority
Ages 6-11
 Child develops cognitive abilities to enable
in task completion (school work, play)
 Parents/teachers do not support child’s
efforts: child develops feelings of
inferiority and inadequacy
 Basci strength: Competence

– Exertion of skill and intelligence in pursuing
and completing tasks
Stages as Developmentally
Grouped

Stages 1-4
– Largely determined by others (parents,
teachers)

Stages 5-8
– Individual has more control over environment
– Individual responsibility for crisis resolution in
each stage
Stage 5: Identity vs. Role Confusion
Ages 12-18
 Form ego identity: self-image
 Strong sense of identity: face adulthood
with certainty and confidence
 Identity crisis: confusion of ego identity
 Basic strength: Fidelity

– Emerges from cohesive ego identity
– Sincerity, genuineness, sense of duty in
relationships with others
Stage 6: Intimacy vs. Isolation
Ages 18-35 (approximately)
 Undertake productive work and establish
intimate relationships
 Inability to establish intimacy leads to
social isolation
 Basic strength: Love

– Mutual devotion in a shared identity
– Fusing of oneself with another person
Stage 7: Generativity vs.
Stagnation
Ages 35-55 (approximately)
 Generativity: Active involvement in
teaching/guiding the next generation
 Stagnation involves not seeking outlets for
generativity
 Basic strength: Care

– Broad concern for others
– Need to teach others
Stage 8: Ego Integrity vs. Despair
Ages 55+
 Evaluation of entire life
 Integrity: Look back with satisfaction
 Despair: Review with anger, frustration
 Basic strength: Wisdom

– Detached concern with the whole of life
Evidence of Ego Integrity vs. Despair
Evidence of Ego Integrity
“Hurt”

I hurt myself today
to see if I still feel
I focus on the pain
the only thing that's real
the needle tears a hole
the old familiar sting
try to kill it all away
but I remember everything
what have I become?
my sweetest friend
everyone I know
goes away in the end
and you could have it all
my empire of dirt
I wear this crown of thorns
upon my liar's chair
full of broken thoughts
I cannot repair
beneath the stains of time
the feelings disappear
you are someone else
I am still right here
I will let you down
I will make you hurt if I could start
again
a million miles away
I would keep myself
I would find a way
Assessment in Erikson’s Theory

Psychohistorical Analysis
– Application of lifespan theory to lives of
historical figures
Ex. Ghandi
Research in Erikson’s Theory

Trust
– Early strong bonds with mother later were
more curious, sociable and popular

Identity
– Strong identity associated with greater
cognitive and emotional functioning in college
students
– Crisis may begin later than age 12
– Continuing process over the lifespan
Research in Erikson’s Theory

Generativity
– Evokes need to feel closer to others
– Correlated with extraversion, openness to
new experiences
– Likely to be involved in community, social
relationships
Research in Erikson’s Theory

Maturity
– High ego integrity: spent much time reviewing
their lives

Ethnic Identity
– Ethnic minorities: ethnic identity significant
factor in determining sense of self
Contributions of Erikson
Personality develops throughout the
lifetime
 Identity crisis in adolescence
 Impact of social, cultural, personal and
situational forces in forming personality

Criticisms of Erikson
Ambiguous terms and concepts
 Lack of precision

– Some terms are not easily measured
empirically
Experiences in stage may only apply to
males
 Identity crisis may only apply to those
affluent enough to explore identities
