Cognitive Vs Sociocultural Child Development Theories Explored

Cognitive vs Sociocultural child development theories explored

Swiss psychologist Jean Piaget and Russian psychologist Lev Vygotsky each developed their own ideas of child development. Piaget separated development into four stages: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete-operational, and formal-operational. While Vygotsky believed that human activities take place in cultural settings and cannot be understood apart from the settings (Woolfolk, Anita. 4th Canadian edition, educational Psychology pg.39). Cognitive development differs from culture to culture and in different historical eras. Though both of the well-known theories explain child development, they are each different from one another.

The most obvious difference is that Piaget's stages are hierarchical, while Vygotsky's are not. This means that one of Piaget's stages must be "completed" before moving on to the next; these four stages are passed through in the same order for everyone but may not be the same time. Vygotsky's theory does not depend on time. Also, Piaget's stages imply that children cognitively develop on their own. That is, a child completes one of Piaget's stages on his own, without the help of outside aid. For example, during the sensorimotor stage, a child begins to understand that an object exists even when it is out of sight; no social interaction is needed for a child to understand that. The child's thinking develops the major senses of seeing, hearing, moving, touching and tasting. On the other hand, Vygotsky's theory concentrates more on the social interactions and aid given to a child while he develops. For example, a child will learn by interacting and communicating with older peers and adults who are more knowledgeable. Cognitive development results from guided participation or social interactions. Adults are important because they know the culture’s way and