Stages and Dimensions of Psychological Development

Abstract

Now that we have discussed the mechanisms of learning, which influence behaviour, thinking and feeling throughout our lives, we are free to consider the evidence on whether this is a continuous process, largely controlled from without, or whether it unfolds in set stages, in a pre-determined sequence, largely from within. That is, are stages of cognitive and linguistic development real and rather immutable, as Vygotsky, Piaget and others have argued, or are they artifacts in the eye of the beholder? Note that there are strong clinical implications attached to what we decide. Vygotsky, a pioneer of stage theory alongside Piaget, was clear on this issue:

As we know from investigations of the process of concept formation, a concept is more than the sum of certain associative bonds formed by memory, more than a mere mental habit; it is a complex and genuine act of thought that cannot be taught by drilling but can be accomplished only when the child’s mental development itself has reached the requisite level. (Vygotsky, 1962: 82)