Key Differences Between Child Psychology And Childhood Study

541 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Jean piaget stages of development conclusion

What are the key differences between child psychology and childhood studies?
There are several differences between the way child psychology and childhood studies view and study children, however this discussion will concentrate on two of the key areas in which they differ.
Childhood studies is an approach to studying children that believes childhood is shaped by social, cultural, historical, political and economic factors. Its primary focus of research is targeted around the child and its social environment.
Child psychology is an approach to studying children that is concerned with understanding and explaining physical, cognitive, social and emotional development. It concentrates on the individual child and the influence of internal factors. …show more content…

Psychology looks at the child itself and focuses on looking at development internally before looking at outside influences whereas childhood studies is interested in children as a social group and recognises development as a product of external factors. An example of looking at children’s development, through a psychological perspective, is that of the work of Jean Piaget, (Piaget, 1929, cited in Gjersoe, 2014) an influential theorist in psychology. Piaget was interested in the cognitive development of children and based on his work, developed a theory that children reach stages of development in the same order at around the same time. He believed that these milestones were innate to the child. Information-processing accounts is a recent theory that utilises Piaget’s perspective on childhood development. It explains that children undergo a transition through stages whilst growing up, from a very simplified way of processing information to a more advanced way of processing information and this transition is believed to be a natural process. Childhood studies, however, believes that children are socially constructed. Social construction looks at the external factors involved in development and recognises that children’s development and experiences can differ dependent on outside

Show More
Related

  • Health and Social Care

    1450 Words  | 3 Pages

    A child’s development and learning commences from the earliest days of their lives. The unique identity of each individual stems from the relationships with people who provide love, care and emotional support. These relationships can be within the home environment, school playground or with extended family members and friends. Children respond to stimuli which in turn form the ‘internal working model’ (K101, Unit 5). This can be described as how we view ourselves and others within society; it influences what we expect and how we respond to situations.

    Read More

  • Jean Piaget Analysis

    1442 Words  | 3 Pages

    A well-known psychologist, Jean Piaget is most famous for his work in child development. In his theory of cognitive development, Piaget presents four stages of mental development: sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational. Piaget explains the adaptation processes that allow transition from one stage to the next. He also emphasizes the role of schemas as a basic unit of knowledge.

    Read More

  • Comparing Childhood Studies

    1109 Words  | 3 Pages

    The study of children and their development is a new interdisciplinary field unifying research from sociology, anthropology, development psychology, law, and healthcare. Childhood studies emerged from the universal need to understand children’s development, their susceptibility to external factors, and what it means to be a child from the child 's perspective. Children differ depending on many factors, such as place, time, social status, religion, and tradition, and each of these aspects

    Read More

  • The Social Construction of Childhood

    2204 Words  | 5 Pages

    While all societies acknowledge that children are different from adults, how they are different, changes, both generationally and across cultures. “The essence of childhood studies is that childhood is a social and cultural phenomenon” (James, 1998). Evident that there are in fact multiple childhoods, a unifying theme of childhood studies is that childhood is a social construction and aims to explore the major implications on future outcomes and adulthood. Recognizing childhood as a social construction guides exploration through themes to a better understanding of multiple childhoods, particularly differences influencing individual perception and experience of childhood. Childhood is socially constructed according to parenting style by parents’ ability to create a secure parent-child relationship, embrace love in attitudes towards the child through acceptance in a prepared environment, fostering healthy development which results in evidence based, major impacts on the experience of childhood as well as for the child’s resiliency and ability to overcome any adversity in the environment to reach positive future outcomes and succeed.

    Read More

  • Child Psychology And The Development Of Child Development

    1012 Words  | 3 Pages

    Child psychology, also known as child development, is the study of psychological growth of children; how these mechanisms develop from infancy to adolescence and why they deviate from one child to the next. Child development is associated with biological, psychological, and emotional diversity that occur in humans. Although there is a different advancement for each child, these developmental changes may be greatly determined by genetic factors and experience during prenatal life. The early years of a child’s life are very important for his or her health and development. Parents, health professionals, educators, and others can work together as partners to help children grow up to reach their full potential.

    Read More

  • Similarities And Similarities Between Piaget And Vygotsky

    1342 Words  | 3 Pages

    The similarities in the theories, including the development perspective and dialectical approach, are very complex and focus upon the fundamentals of each theory. The differences in each theory make them very unique, including the autonomous and heteronomous approaches for each respective theory. The four cognitive stages of Piaget’s theory, including sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operations, and formal operations, provide a clear, effective progression of an individual’s development path from infancy to adulthood. This is very unique to Piaget’s theory and is utilized immensely in academic studies of psychology. The fundamental aspects of Vygotsky’s theory, including cultural and historical factors contributing to the individual’s development is also very unique and is regularly utilized in academic studies. Without the research that each theorist conducted and presented, the psychology studies that we know today would not be the same. The work of both respective theorists will continue to be utilized in academia and in psychology for many years to

    Read More

  • Jean Piaget Learning Theory

    872 Words  | 2 Pages

    Jean Piaget is a Switzerland psychologist and biologist who understand children’s intellectual development. Piaget is the first to study cognitive development. He developed the four stages of cognitive development: the sensori-motor stage, preoperational stage, the concrete operational and the formal operational stage. Piaget curiosity was how children cogitate and developed. As they get mature and have the experience, children’s will get knowledgeable. He suggested that children develop schemas so they can present the world. Children’s extend their schemas through the operation of accommodation and assimilation.

    Read More

  • Piaget's Four Stages of Cognitive Development

    1634 Words  | 4 Pages

    “The influence of Piaget’s ideas in developmental psychology has been enormous. He changed how people viewed the child’s world and their methods of studying children. He was an inspiration to many who came after and took up his ideas. Piaget's ideas have generated a huge amount of research which has increased our understanding of cognitive development.” (McLeod 2009). Piaget purposed that we move through stages of cognitive development. He noticed that children showed different characteristics throughout their childhood development. The four stages of development are The Sensorimotor stage, The Preoperational Stage, The Concrete operational stage and The Formal operational stage.

    Read More

  • Jean Piaget Theory

    910 Words  | 2 Pages

    Jean Piaget’s stages of cognitive development suggests that children have four different stages of mental development. The main concept of Jean Piaget’s theory is that he believes in children being scientists by experimenting with things and making observations with their senses. This approach emphasizes how children’s ability to make sense of their immediate everyday surroundings. Piaget also proposed that children be perceived to four stages based on maturation and experiences.

    Read More

  • Child Development By John W Santrock

    703 Words  | 2 Pages

    Therefore giving a very balanced view on the subject. It starts out with a thorough foundation on the science of child development, looking at the theories and the psychologists behind them. Figure 2.12 offers an at a glance comparison table of all five types of theories – their methodologies and problems. The opening story in this chapter about the lives of Erik Erikson and Jean Piaget highlights how an individual’s experiences impact on the path they will take in life, a pertinent point to make at the outset of this book. Research methods and their descriptions tie suitably into the theories they might be used for. Sections two and three are an engaging and sometimes surprising look at the numerous ways in which we develop and

    Read More

  • Compare And Contrast Erikson And Piaget's Theory Of Cognitive Development

    1116 Words  | 3 Pages

    The two theories that will be discussed throughout this paper are Jean Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development and Erik Erikson’s Theory of Psychosocial Development. The major themes and concepts of the two theories share both differences and similarities. Specific emphasis will be placed on the earliest years of life and will also be related to separation, individuation, and attachment theory. Piaget’s Theory of Cognitive Development focuses on the concept of schemas and cognitive thought that helps an individual organize knowledge and understand the world, in comparison to Erikson’s theory which focuses on conflicts that arise between and within the ego. Accommodation and assimilation occur throughout Piaget’s theory as a result of children changing their schema to adapt.

    Read More

  • Piaget Theory Essay

    1044 Words  | 3 Pages

    “{No theory of cognitive development has had more impact than the cognitive stages presented by Jean Piaget. Piaget, a Swiss psychologist, suggested that children go through four separate stages in a fixed order that is universal in all children. Piaget declared that these stages differ not only in the quantity of information acquired at each, but also in the quality of knowledge and understanding at that stage. Piaget suggested that movement from one stage to the next occurred when the child reached an appropriate level of maturation and was exposed to relevant types of experiences. Without experience, children were assumed incapable of reaching their highest cognitive ability. Piaget's four stages are known as the sensorimotor, preoperational, concrete operational, and formal operational stages.

    Read More

  • Explain The Key Issues And Controversies In Psychology

    697 Words  | 2 Pages

    The key issues and controversies in psychology are Free Will vs Determinism, Free Will is the idea that behaviour is primarily caused by choices that are made by an individual and Determinism is the idea that people’s behaviour are produced primarily by factors outside their control. Nature vs Nurture, Nature is about people’s behaviour due to their genetically determined nature and how much is due to nurture, the influence and social environment a child is raised. A third questions addressed from a psychologist is Conscious vs Unconscious Cause of Behaviour, it is about how much of our behaviour is produced by forces of which we are aware of and how much is due to unconscious activity such as mental processes that are not accessible to the conscious awareness. An additional key issues is Observable Behaviour vs Internal Mental Processes, Where do psychologists focus solely on behaviour that can be outside observes or on unseen thinking processes. Some of

    Read More

  • The Nature of Child Development

    1166 Words  | 3 Pages

    Jean Piaget(1929), widely known as one of the pioneers in investigating child development, has developed his theory on the basis of cognitive stages. He presents four aspects of the child `s concept formation: sensorimotor ,preoperational, concrete operational and formal operational. All of these stages suggest the emergence of development precedes the ability to learn. Moreover, It is emphasised on the intellectual development regardless of the cultural influences and specific individual differences. Therefore, human cognitive development is regarded as universal for all human species. On the one hand, Piaget sees the human internal conception in interaction with external world messages conveyed. On the other hand, a child`s ability to perceive cognitive information in an effective way is not clearly defined. Resulting from this, old experiences receive new names. According to Piaget th...

    Read More

  • The Critique of Piaget's Theories

    1634 Words  | 4 Pages

    The Critique of Piaget's Theories Jean Piaget (1896 – 1980) was a constructivist theorist. He saw children as constructing their own world, playing an active part in their own development. Piaget’s insight opened up a new window into the inner working of the mind and as a result he carried out some remarkable studies on children that had a powerful influence on theories of child thought. This essay is going to explain the main features and principles of the Piagetian theory and then provide criticism against this theory. Cognitive development refers to way in which a person’s style of thinking changes with age.

    Read More

More about Key Differences Between Child Psychology And Childhood Study

Open Document