THE WORKS (cont)
•Moral Judgment of the Child (1932). four stages of moral development of child •Logic and Epistemology (1953). four stages of cognitive development :Genetic Epistemology •laid foundations for the development of another set or schema •Theory included large number of different skill sets of schemas influenced by Gestaltists
Piaget had not only worked on Genetic Epistemology, child’s reasoning process and language development, but he had also worked on moral development. Piaget argued that there are four stages of moral development of child. He narrated his views in his book Moral Judgment of the Child (1932). After working on moral judgment, Piaget structured four stages of cognitive development in his book Logic and Epistemology (1953). Piaget believed that from birth, human beings are active and do not require external incentives. He proposed that the cognitive development occurs in four stages.
Piaget also worked on and in his book on Logic and Epistemology; he identified infants as initially forming basic sensorimotor skills in relation to their physical environment. As this set or schema of basic sensorimotor skills developed, it increasingly laid foundations for the development of another set or schema of exploratory skills.
Piaget in his child developmental research gradually built up a theory, which included a large number of different skill sets of schemas. He argued that each of these skills sets tended to be open to be attended by children of differing ages as they become adapted to the world around them.
He also suggested that there might be preoperational, concrete, operational and formal operational stages of development. Piaget was influenced by Gestaltists, which we can observe from his book on The Child Conception of Space (with Barbel Inhelder, 1948). Piaget observed that a child views space topologically, rather than geometrically. For a child special relationships are qualitative rather than quantitative and later child develops his conception of space.
Piaget first intended to study children for the purpose of understanding the development of thought, both in individuals and in the species. In his early days of research work on child development, he was interested in studying genetic epistemology from a scientific viewpoint instead of a philosophical one.
That led him into studies of cognitive development; language and moral and intellectual development trait brought him fame not as a biologist or a philosopher, but as a Child Psychologist.
Piaget’s work on child psychology not just focuses as on his observations, but also on his methodology in studying children.
Mostly, he had adopted the method of observation to understand the child behaviour.
In fact, Piaget’s work has also been much criticized on grounds of his method.
How can findings based on observations of small numbers of children all living in a Geneva or Paris be generalized?
Yet for most, Piaget’s thoughts and ideas on cognitive development of child have stood up well in the light of the enormous amount of subsequent research.
Piaget devoted over half a century to his psychological research.
He has stimulated considerable experimental research throughout the world.
He stimulated thought-provoking criticism also.
The eminent psychologist of Harvard, Roger Brown, who has a high opinion of Freud, remarked that, "After Freud, it is Jean Piaget, I think, who has made the greatest contribution to modern psychology."