How Do the Major Theories of Child Development (Known as the ‘Grand Theories’) Explore the Importance of Social Experiences?
How do the major theories of child development (known as the ‘grand theories’) explore the importance of social experiences?
Social experiences play a vital role in the development of children. Theories of child development have been created to help us to understand how children’s minds develop, taking into account the differences between cultures around the world. Some of these theories explore the possibility that children gain knowledge, develop new concepts and bridge new ideas through interaction with experience and cognitive schemata. Some theories explore the theory that development also plays a role in social experience.
There are many theories of development, but some are more influential and have inspired a lot of research. There are four main contrasting theories of child development that not only help us to understand child development as a whole, but also assist us in the understanding of the role of social experiences in child development.
These four theories of development are often referred to as the ‘grand theories’ as they cover all aspects of child development, not just specific parts. The four grande theories are behaviourist theory, the social learning model, constructivist theory, and social constructivist theory. This essay will discuss and outling the four main theories of development, compare and contrast some of the concepts of the main theories, then discuss whether or not the theory is able to explain the role of social experiences in child development.
Behaviourism used to be the most dominant theory in psychology throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s. The evidence provided by the behaviourist experimental technique has been was very important to the discipline of psychology, and many of the theories have stood up to the test of time. Behaviourist psychologists such as were Ivan Pavlov, John Watson and B.F. Skinner. They used techniques such as conditioning (classical conditioning and operand conditioning) to explore the
Social experiences play a vital role in the development of children. Theories of child development have been created to help us to understand how children’s minds develop, taking into account the differences between cultures around the world. Some of these theories explore the possibility that children gain knowledge, develop new concepts and bridge new ideas through interaction with experience and cognitive schemata. Some theories explore the theory that development also plays a role in social experience.
There are many theories of development, but some are more influential and have inspired a lot of research. There are four main contrasting theories of child development that not only help us to understand child development as a whole, but also assist us in the understanding of the role of social experiences in child development.
These four theories of development are often referred to as the ‘grand theories’ as they cover all aspects of child development, not just specific parts. The four grande theories are behaviourist theory, the social learning model, constructivist theory, and social constructivist theory. This essay will discuss and outling the four main theories of development, compare and contrast some of the concepts of the main theories, then discuss whether or not the theory is able to explain the role of social experiences in child development.
Behaviourism used to be the most dominant theory in psychology throughout the 1950’s and 1960’s. The evidence provided by the behaviourist experimental technique has been was very important to the discipline of psychology, and many of the theories have stood up to the test of time. Behaviourist psychologists such as were Ivan Pavlov, John Watson and B.F. Skinner. They used techniques such as conditioning (classical conditioning and operand conditioning) to explore the
References: Bandura, A. (1989) ‘Social cognitive theory’, in Vasta, R. (ed.) Annals of Child Development, pp. 1–60, Greenwich, CT and London, JAI Press. Crain, W. C. (2000) Theories of Development: concepts and applications,Upper Saddle Place, NJ, Prentice Hall. Liebert, R. M., Poulos, R. W. and Marmor, G. S. (1977, 2nd edn) Developmental Psychology, Upper Saddle Place, NJ, Prentice Hall. Newson, J. and Newson, E. (1976) ‘On the social origins of symbolic functioning’, in Varma, V. P. and Williams, P. (eds) Piaget, Psychology and Education,London, Hodder and Stoughton. Vygotsky, L. S. (1934/1986) Thought and Language, Cambridge, MA, MIT Press. Vygotsky, L. (1978) Mind in Society: the development of higher psychological processes, Cambridge, MA, Harvard University Press. Vygotsky, L. S. (1981) ‘The development of higher forms of attention in childhood’, in Wertsch, J. V. (ed.), The Concept of Activity in Soviet Psychology, Armonk, NY, Sharpe.