23rd November 2023

Other Theories of Cognitive Development

Vygotsy’s theory

Vygotsky agrees with Piaget that development does not occur in a vacuum – knowledge is constructed as a result of the child’s active interaction with the environment. However, for Piaget, that environment is asocial. Vygotsky described the development of a child as largely related to the different cultural tools handed down to them by other people. Hence, cognitive development is thoroughly social (social constructivist theory). His aim was to spell out how the higher mental functions of a child, like reasoning, understanding, planning and remembering, arise out of the child’s social experiences. He considered cognitive development in terms of three levels – cultural, interpersonal and individual.

• Children inherit cultural tools of different kinds, technological (clocks, bicycles, computers and other physical objects), psychological (symbols, language, maths and science, for example) and values (speed, efficiency, power, etc.). The most essential cultural tool is language.
• On an interpersonal level, the ability to reason and think for ourselves is essentially a social process. For Vygotsky, cognitive development involves an active internalisation of problem-solving processes that take place as a result of mutual interaction between children and those with whom they have regular contact with, for example, parents, friends, teachers, etc.

The concept of a zone of proximal development (ZPD) and scaffolding are important parts of Vygotsky’s model. ZPD defines those functions that are in the process of maturing – ‘buds and flowers rather than fruits of development’. Scaffolding is the guidance and support adults provide to help the child attain knowledge and skills.

Bruner’s theory

Jermome Bruner extended Vygotsky’s ideas and applied them in the context of education. He agreed with Piaget that children are actively curious, explorative and capable of adapting to their environment, and their underlying cognitive structure matures over time so they can think about and organise their world in increasingly complex ways. Like Vygotsky, Bruner stressed interpersonal communications, the impact of culture and the role of language in this process of maturation.

Information-processing approach

The information-processing (IP) approach sees development as occurring quite independently of social interaction. This approach grew out of Piaget’s theory and in contrast to theories by Vygotsky and Bruner. They believe there are psychological structures in people’s minds that explain their behaviour and are essentially independent of the individual’s social interactions, social practices and cultural environment. The merit of this approach is that it examined more closely than Piaget how major cognitive processes like memory and attention come into play when children deal with particular tasks and problems.

References

• Sadock, B. J., & Sadock, V. A. (2007). Kaplan & Sadock’s synopsis of psychiatry: Behavioural sciences/clinical psychiatry (11th ed.). Wolters Kluwer.
• Gross, R. (2020). Psychology: the science of mind and behaviour (8th ed.). Hodder.
• Schaffer, H.R. (2004) Introducing Child Psychology. Oxford: Blackwell Publishing.