PSYC 4010 Chapter Notes - Chapter 7: Child Development, Lev Vygotsky, Dialectic
15 Apr 2013
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Dialecticism: the child developing in a social world. Dialectical theories based on the notion that development occurs as a result of a tension and interaction between internal and external influences. Vgotsky"s focus was on the development of cognition under social influence. Hegel proposed that reality is arrived at through a dialectic between three components thesis, antithesis and synthesis. Synthesis in turn becomes the next thesis, and so the process continues. Central to vygotsky"s theory is the notion that human cognition has its beginnings in human social life. Vygotsky emphasized that the child develops cognitively through interactions with others, hence his theory is dialectical. Vygotsky"s theory was instrumental, cultural and genetic. Individuals were active agents in creating their own development and learning, a feature held in common with piaget"s theory. Language is a cultural tool in the development of thinking. Genetic interaction with others, high-order mental functions develop from lower-order ones.
