PIAGET'S STUDY OF CONSERVATION | Developmental Psychology (OCR GCSE)

Summary

This video discusses Piaget's 1952 study on the conservation of number, exploring how children’s understanding of quantities changes as they develop. The study tests Piaget's hypothesis that children in the concrete operational stage (around age 7) can understand that the amount of something remains the same, even if its appearance changes. The video covers the study’s procedure, findings, and criticisms, emphasizing the importance of cognitive development stages. It also highlights common evaluation issues such as small sample size and the potential for confusion in the testing process, all while offering useful tips for students studying psychology.

Takeaways

• 😀 Piaget's study aimed to test the concept of conservation of number in children, supporting his cognitive development theory.
• 😀 Conservation of number refers to understanding that the amount remains the same despite changes in physical appearance, such as the spacing of objects.
• 😀 Children in the pre-operational stage (under 7 years old) cannot conserve, while those in the concrete operational stage (7+ years old) can.
• 😀 Piaget’s experiment was conducted in 1952 and involved children from a Swiss school, including some of Piaget's own children.
• 😀 The independent variable in Piaget’s study was the age of the children, and the dependent variable was whether they could conserve or not.
• 😀 The study used an independent measures design, meaning each child participated in only one condition of the experiment.
• 😀 In the procedure, two rows of counters were shown to each child, who was asked which row had more counters. After spreading one row out, the child was asked again.
• 😀 Findings indicated that children in the pre-operational stage struggled to conserve, while those in the concrete operational stage were consistently able to conserve and explain why.
• 😀 The study supports Piaget’s hypothesis that children can only conserve once they reach the concrete operational stage.
• 😀 Criticisms of the study include potential confusion from asking the same question twice, and concerns about the low population validity due to the small, non-representative sample of children from Switzerland.
• 😀 For exam preparation, it’s important to know the key parts of Piaget’s study, including its procedure, findings, and criticisms.

Q & A

What is the main focus of Piaget's 1952 study?

Piaget's 1952 study focuses on testing his theory of conservation, particularly the concept of conservation of number, and whether children in the concrete operational stage can understand that the number of objects in a row remains the same even if the physical appearance changes.

What does the term 'conservation' mean in Piaget's theory?

Conservation in Piaget's theory refers to the understanding that the properties of an object (such as quantity or number) remain the same even if its physical appearance changes. For example, the amount of a substance stays constant even when its shape or appearance is altered.

How does Piaget differentiate between children in the pre-operational and concrete operational stages regarding conservation?

Piaget's theory suggests that children in the pre-operational stage (around ages 2-7) cannot conserve, meaning they struggle to understand that the number or amount of an object remains unchanged when its appearance changes. However, children in the concrete operational stage (around ages 7-11) can conserve and understand that properties like number or volume remain constant despite changes in appearance.

What was the key hypothesis of Piaget's conservation study?

Piaget hypothesized that children in the concrete operational stage would be able to conserve, while children in the pre-operational stage would not be able to conserve.

What was the independent and dependent variable in Piaget's study?

In Piaget's study, the independent variable was the age of the children, while the dependent variable was whether the children could conserve or not.

How was the study designed in terms of the research method?

Piaget's study used an independent measures design, where each child only participated in one condition of the experiment. This was to test whether their ability to conserve could be linked to their developmental stage.

What was the procedure of the conservation of number experiment?

In the experiment, Piaget presented two rows of counters to each child and asked them which row had more counters. After the child answered, one row of counters was spread out, and the child was asked the same question again. The children's ability to correctly answer whether the number of counters remained the same showed their ability to conserve.

What were the findings of Piaget's conservation study?

Piaget found that children in the pre-operational stage struggled to conserve and could not consistently recognize that the number of counters in both rows was the same. However, children in the concrete operational stage were able to conserve and consistently understood that the number of counters remained the same even when the row was spread out.

What are some criticisms of Piaget's study?

One criticism is that Piaget might have confused the children by asking the same question twice, which could have led them to believe they needed to change their answer. Additionally, the sample used was small and not representative, as it consisted of children from a Swiss school, including some of Piaget's own children, which may limit the generalizability of the findings.

What is one limitation of the sample used in Piaget's study?

A major limitation of the sample is that it was small and not very representative. It consisted of children from a single Swiss school, including some of Piaget's own children, which could introduce bias and reduce the external validity of the study.