Piaget Described the Preoperational Child as an Egocentric, Animistic Thinker

question 141

Essay

Piaget described the preoperational child as an egocentric, animistic thinker. He also believed the preoperational child to be incapable of conservation. Describe Piaget's basis for his conclusions, and explain why current developmentalists believe preoperational children to be more cognitively capable than Piaget maintained.

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Definitions:

Comparative Inference

The process of deducing conclusions by comparing different sets of data or information.

Testability

The capability of a hypothesis or theory to be tested, confirmed, or refuted through experimentation or observation.

Comparative Reasoning

The process of evaluating the similarities and differences between two or more entities to draw a conclusion or make a decision.

Comparative Inference

The process of drawing conclusions based on the comparison of different data sets, cases, or instances.