Childhood Beliefs In 'Parents, Peas, And Putty Tats'

The Development of Childhood Beliefs
In Chapter 5 of Born to Believe, “Parents, Peas, and “Putty Tats”: The Development of Childhood Beliefs”, Andrew Newberg and Mark Robert Waldman describe the development of childhood beliefs through Jean Piaget’s theories of cognitive development. They also go into detail about the development of recovered memories and the inaccuracies that can come with them. Children remember things based on what their parents, friends, teachers, etc. say and sometimes they really believe that something happened, even when it really didn’t. Children’s beliefs are molded based on what they see and hear in their surrounding environment and they often make connections between these factors: “I also began to believe that everything was somehow fundamentally connected. Whether it was the good I ate, or my family and friends, I felt that we all were bound to each other by some unseen mechanism or force” (104).
After reading this chapter, and analyzing the rhetorical aspects of not only this chapter but other parts of the book,
Newberg is an associate professor of Radiology and Psychiatry at the University of Pennsylvania and assistance professor of Religious Studies. He has published over a hundred essays, articles, and book chapters on religious topics and beliefs. (Authors Page) Waldman is an associate fellow at the Center for Spirituality and the Mind at the University of Pennsylvania. He has written nine books and anthologies on creativity, literature, personal relationships and writing. Waldman also has a counseling practice in California that specializes in psychospiritual development. (Authors Page) As human beings, they both had their own childhood and life experiences that led them to believe this information. They obviously know what they are talking about considering their education and background in this field of