A Level Religious Studies: Jean Piaget Revision Notes with Strengths and Weaknesses

JEAN PIAGET

• Argued that children develop their intellect through interacting with the world. This happens in stages where the child gets an understanding of the world they live in.

The Schemata

Child develops internal representations of mental and physical actions. Some schemata are already present in a newborn (sucking, gripping or crying) whilst some are developed as the child grows. The schemata are built through 2 processes:

1. Assimilation – fitting newly acquired knowledge into what the child already knows.

2. Accommodation – as new experiences occur which do not fit into existing schemata, the child adapts them to fit, or creates new ones.

Assimilation > Equilibrium > New Situation > Disequilibrium > Accommodation > Assimilation (restart)

This process happens when the child encounters something unfamiliar. The child applies an existing schema, but is not successful. They modify the schema to suit, and the cycle starts again.

Piaget explains that children move through this cycle constantly as they encounter new and unfamiliar situations. He recognised four stages of cognitive development:

1. The Sensorimotor Stage (0-2yrs) - This is where the infant only knows its immediate surroundings. It learns through its senses, and is unaware of anything beyond itself.

2. The Pre-Operational Stage (2-7yrs) - The child is beginning to be aware of a world beyond itself. However, it is still unconcerned about other people, and cannot perform activities involving reason.

3. Concrete Operational Stage (7-11yrs) - The child develops a greater cognitive awareness. It is less self-centred. However, the child often needs something physical to assist in feats of logic or cognitive processing (such as addition or subtraction).

Piaget believed that most adults use a mixture of these two. When someone is less dependent on views of others, they go to autonomous levels.

Piaget believed that most adults use a mixture of these two. When someone is less dependent on views of others, they go to autonomous levels.

 The Two Stages in Moral Development

1. Heteronomous Morality (Generally demonstrated by 5-11yr olds) – The child looks beyond itself for moral authority. Rules are obeyed, with an expectation of swift punishments for lapses (immanent justice). Immoral acts are judged by observable consequences.

 2. Autonomous Morality (Generally demonstrated by 10+yr olds) – The child begins to develop a personal code of conduct, based on perceptions of socially acceptable behaviour patterns. Motive becomes more important, and moral situations are recognised for their complexity.

Immature conscience (5-10yr olds) – to do with guilt which comes with discipline when we are young. Little to do with rational importance of an action, since we just seek others’ approval. It is consequentialist and is more heteronomous morality.

Mature conscience (ages 11+) – outward-looking. Challenges and questions things and we form our own rules. This is more autonomous morality.

Quotes

“With regard to moral rules, the child submits more or less completely in intention to the rules laid down for him, but these, remaining, as it were, external to the subject’s conscience, do not really transform his conduct”

“From the moral as from the intellectual point of view, the child is born neither good nor bad but master of his destiny.”

Strengths & Weaknesses

Strengths	Weaknesses
Can be appreciated by all. Theists can say God makes the conscience develop others say it’s biological psychological process	Many psychologists criticise him – several experiment claim to discredit his stages of cognitive development, arguing that he took no notice of cultural characteristics.
Easy to understand, yet explains the other stages of development and the conscience	Most criticisms are procedural – they are Piaget’s findings were based on flawed data because his experiments didn’t take various factors into account.
The intention of the conscience is to form a functional society	Assumes we are all the same in our development.
Religious believers can also be in support of his theory as the psychological argument can be applied to those with or without religious faith therefore all people can held to be morally accountable.	It is also argued that there are 3 stages of moral development including theonomous morality, which Piaget fails to mention. Theonomous morality is based on an understanding of God, which includes situation ethics where agapeic love is theonomous. Religious believers will therefore argue that they obey his rules because of the agapeic love of God and not just the fear of God only.

Overall...

Origin of conscience: When young, we look to others for moral authority and so our conscience can develop through this. There are rules in place and we learn through punishment and guilt.

Authority of conscience: The rules put in place, either from other figures or ourselves, must be followed and obeyed.

Disobedience of conscience: Not following our conscience leads to feelings of guilt.