Piaget’s Sensorimotor Stage

Background *Born on august 9, 1896 in a small university town in Switzerland. *Showed an early interest in nature and was published in a natural history magazine for an observation describing an albino sparrow when he was just 10 years old. *He studied biology and epistemology (branch of philosophy focused on study of knowledge) when he was young

Background *Completed his undergrad with studies of natural sciences and two years later received the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. *Moved to Paris where he worked at a boys institution standardizing an intelligence test and studied the mind *Married in 1923 and had 3 children *Published more than forty full-length books and more than a hundred articles in the field of child psychology *Died on September 16, 1980

The Sensorimotor Stage Piaget divides intellectual development into 4 Stages * Sensorimotor * Pre-operational * Concrete operational * Formal operational

The 6 Substages Stage 1- The Use of Reflexes (birth to 1 month) The formation of schema are made through natural, inborn reflexes (e.g. sucking reflex) Stage 2- Primary Circular Reactions (1 to 4 months) The child accidentally encounters a new experience and tries to repeat it. (e.g. sucking the thumb)

The 6 Substages Stage 3- Secondary Circular Reactions (4 to 8 months) The discovery of and reproduction of an event external to the child. (e.g. repeatedly moving an external object) Stage 4- Coordination of Secondary Schemes (8 to 12 mo) The coordination of different schemes to get a desired result (e.g. striking to get a box)

The 6 Substages Stage 5- Tertiary Circular Reactions (12-18 months) Performing different actions to observe various outcomes. (e.g. hand at different angles under a faucet) Stage 6- The Beginnings of Thought (18 mo. to 2 years) Thinking before acting. (e.g. planning how to open a box to acquire its contents)

Hypothesis We hypothesize that our child will follow the succession of schema presented as normal to each stage, based upon her age. She is 15 months old, therefore we believe she will have acquired the schema normal to stage 5.

Experiment The experiment consisted of performing tests and observing the child’s reactions to determine if she had acquired various schema to prove she had reached the stage appropriate for her age. Stage 1- Reflexes

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 Piaget’s Norm Our Result Determination Stage 1 Child performs rooting reflex Child does not perform reflex Child has progressed from stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6

Stage 2- Primary Circular Reactions The child shows that she has the schema normal to the second stage by repeatedly playing with her own ears.

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 Piaget’s Norm Our Result Determination Stage 1 Child performs rooting reflex Child does not perform reflex Child has progressed from stage 1 Stage 2 Performs egocentric Circular reactions Repeatedly plays with ears Child has progressed from stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6

Stage 3- Secondary Circular Reactions The child is capable of moving the cups for no other reason than the pleasure of doing so.

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 Piaget’s Norm Our Result Determination Stage 1 Child performs rooting reflex Child does not perform reflex Child has progressed from stage 1 Stage 2 Performs egocentric Circular reactions Repeatedly plays with ears Child has progressed from stage 2 Stage 3 Performs external circular reactions Plays with cups for pleasure Child has progressed from stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6

Stage 4- Coordination of Secondary Schemes The child displays that she has achieved object permanence and actively seeks out the toy when it is hidden. She will move the blanket to acquire to pick up the stuffed bear.

Experiment Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 Piaget’s Norm Our Result Determination Stage 1 Child performs rooting reflex Child does not perform reflex Child has progressed from stage 1 Stage 2 Performs egocentric Circular reactions Repeatedly plays with ears Child has progressed from stage 2 Stage 3 Performs external circular reactions Plays with cups for pleasure Child has progressed from stage 3 Stage 4 Child displays object permanence Child demonstrates object permanence Child displays norms of stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6

Experiment Stage 5- Tertiary Circular Reactions The child experiments with different tones and volumes while making vocalizations.

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 Piaget’s Norm Our Result Determination Stage 1 Child performs rooting reflex Child does not perform reflex Child has progressed from stage 1 Stage 2 Performs egocentric Circular reactions Repeatedly plays with ears Child has progressed from stage 2 Stage 3 Performs external circular reactions Plays with cups for pleasure Child has progressed from stage 3 Stage 4 Child displays object permanence Child demonstrates object permanence Child displays norms of stage 4 Stage 5 Child performs trial-and-error actions Child speaks loudly and softly Child displays norms of stage 5 Stage 6

Experiment Stage 6- The Beginnings of Thought The child is capable of deferred imitation in that she can imitate an action of another, but lacks the proper methods of expressing the action.

Stage 1 Stage 2 Stage 3 Stage 4 Stage 5 Stage 6 Piaget’s Norm Our Result Determination Stage 1 Child performs rooting reflex Child does not perform reflex Child has progressed from stage 1 Stage 2 Performs egocentric Circular reactions Repeatedly plays with ears Child has progressed from stage 2 Stage 3 Performs external circular reactions Plays with cups for pleasure Child has progressed from stage 3 Stage 4 Child displays object permanence Child demonstrates object permanence Child displays norms of stage 4 Stage 5 Child performs trial-and-error actions Child speaks loudly and softly Child displays norms of stage 5 Stage 6 Shows the beginning of thought Displays symbolism Displays beginnings of stage 6

Conclusion The child we observed has exceeded the norms appropriate for stage 5. She demonstrates schema indicating a transition into stage six. Given that Piaget placed the beginnings of thought at roughly 18 months of age, the child has reached stage 6 about three months ahead of what he considered normal.

Challenges Inability to acquire some footage, even over multiple visits. Time restraints (limited number of visits) Interpretation of observations Inclement weather

Bibliography Crain, W. (2011) Theories of Development (Concepts and Applications). New Jersey. Prentice Hall Ginsburg H.P. (1988) Piaget’s Theory of Intellectual Development. New Jersey. Prentice Hall Phillips J. L. (1969) Orgins of Intellect: Piaget’s Theory. San Francisco. W. H. Freeman and Co. Piaget. J, Inhelder B. (1969) The Psychology of the Child. New York. Basic Books Inc. Wadsworth B. (1989) Piaget’s Thory of Cognitive and Affective Development. New York. Longman Inc.