The Psychology Book (81 page)

MENTAL

OGY

260 INTRODUCTION

In a new edition of

Three Essays on the

Lev Vygotsky’s

Kenneth and Mamie Clark

Theory of Sexuality
,

sociocultural theory of

found the Northside Center

Noam Chomsky

Freud adds a section

learning emphasizes the

for Child Development in

challenges traditional

outlining his theory

importance of the

Harlem, New York, where

theories of
language

of
psychosexual

community
in learning

they examine the formation

learning
in
Syntactic

development
.

and development.

of
racial bias
.

Structures
.

1915

1930S

1946

1957

1920S

1936

1950

1958-60

The psychoanalytic world is

Jean Piaget suggests that

Eric Erikson publishes

John Bowlby

divided on issues of child

cognitive processes

Childhood and Society
,

publishes a series of

development
between

develop in
a series of

which includes an

articles rejecting

Anna Freud’s conservative

well-defined stages

exposition of the eight

psychoanalytic and

approach and Melanie Klein’s

through childhood.

stages of
psychosocial

behavioral theories

“revolutionary” one.

development
.

of attachment.

I
n the early part of the 20th Piaget raised some fundamental importance of a child’s social century, two main approaches

questions: whether we acquire

and cultural environment. Erik

in psychology examined the

knowledge gradually or in distinct

Erikson also built on Piaget’s

psychological development of

stages; whether certain abilities

ideas, identifying eight stages

humans from childhood to

are innate or learned; and how the

of psychosocial development,

adulthood: the psychoanalytic

environment affects development.

including the “identity crisis”

theory of Freud gave an account

His cognitive development theory

of adolescence; while Lawrence

of psychosexual development

suggested that a child’s growth into

Kohlberg came up with six stages

in children, and behaviorism

adulthood is divided into several

of moral development in his studies.

explained the mechanics of the

developmental stages, and within

With the “cognitive revolution”

learning process. However, the

each stage the child learns by doing

that followed World War II,

study of development itself—the

rather than instruction. Piaget’s

psychologists such as Albert

psychological, emotional,

ideas set the stage for the new field

Bandura looked at the issue of

and perceptual changes that

of developmental psychology and

development again, this time

occur during a lifetime—did not

shaped the curricula of schools

in the light of cognitive models

evolve until the 1930s, when Jean

up to the present day.

of information processing. Bandura

Piaget overturned conventional

Other developmental theories

retained elements of both Piaget’s

thinking with the idea that a child

soon emerged. Although broadly

stages of development and

is not just a “miniature adult”

agreeing with Piaget’s findings,

Vygotsky’s social constructivism

gaining knowledge as his or her

Lev Vygotsky argued that it was

in his social learning theory.

body matures, but at the same

necessary for a child to have adult

Cognitive psychology also brought

time is also going through radical

guidance at various stages in his

new ideas about learning,

psychological changes.

learning, and also stressed the

especially the acquisition of