Jean Piaget is inexorably linked to cognitive development. It is clear that in Piaget's writings that there are influences from many historical predecessors. A few that are worth mentioning are included in the following Historical Origins chart. It is intended to be a more inclusive list of researchers who have studied the processes of acquiring more complex ways of thinking as people grow and develop:
References
(2) McLeod, S. A. (2015). Jean Piaget. Retrieved March 20, 2017 from www.simplypsychology.org/piaget.html
(3) Kohlberg, L. (1976). Moral stages and moralization: The cognitive-developmental approach. Moral development and behavior: Theory, research, and social issues, 31-53.
(4) Kohlberg, L. (1981). The philosophy of moral development: Moral stages and the idea of justice (Essays on moral development, Vol. 1). San Francisco: Haiper & Row.
(5) Sully, J. (1895). Studies of childhood. XIV. The child as artist. Popular Science, 48, 385-395.
(6) Sully, J. (1897). Children's Ways: Being Selections from the Author's" Studies of Childhood,": With Some Additional Matter. D. Appleton.
(7)Rousseau, J. (1991). Emile, or, On education. London: Penguin Books.
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| DOB/Death | Contribution to Cognitive Development | |
|---|---|---|
| Jean-Jacques Rousseau | 1712-1778 | Wrote Emile, or On Education[1] , (1762). He discusses childhood development as happening in three stages. First stage, up to age 12, the child is guided by their emotions and impulses. The second stage, ages 12-16, the child's reason starts to develop. The third and final stage, age 16 and up, the child develops into an adult. |
| James Sully | 1842-1923 | Wrote several books on childhood development, including "Studies of Childhood[2]" (1895)(5) and "Children's Ways[3]" (1897)(6). He used a detailed observational study method with the children. Contemporary research in child development actually repeats observations, and observational methods, summarized by Sully in his 1895 work "Studies of Childhood", such as the mirror technique. |
| Lev Vygotsky | 1896-1934 | Area of specialty was developmental psychology. Main contribution is the somewhat controversial "Zone of Proximal Development" (ZPD) which states that 'play' of young children should be their main activity as this is their main source of development in terms of emotional, volitional, and cognitive development. ZPD is the link between children's learning and cognitive development. |
| Maria Montessori | 1870-1952 | Began her career working with mentally disabled children in 1897, then she conducted observation and experimental research in elementary schools. Wrote The Discovery of the Child[4] (1948). Discussed the Four Planes of Development. Birth - 6, 6 -12, 12 -18, and 18 -24. The Montessori Method now has three developmentally-meaningful age groups. 2 - 2.5, 2.5 - 6, and 6 - 12. She was working on human behavior in older children but only published lecture notes on the subject. |
| Jean Piaget | 1896-1980 | Piaget was the first psychologist to brand this type of study as "cognitive development". Other researchers, in multiple disciplines, had studied development in children before, but Piaget is often credited as being the first one to make a systematic study of cognitive development and gave it its name. His main contribution is the stage theory of child cognitive development. He also published his observational studies of cognition in children, and created a series of simple tests to reveal different cognitive abilities in children. |
| Lawrence Kohlberg | 1927-1987 | Wrote the theory of stages of moral development which extended Piaget's findings of cognitive development and showed that they continue through the lifespan. Kohlberg's 6 stages follow Piaget's constructivist requirements in that stages can not be skipped and it is very rare to regress in stages. Notable works: Moral Stages and Moralization: The Cognitive-Development Approach[5] (1976) and Essays on Moral Development[6] (1981) |