Jean Piaget Developmental Theory Essay

As children begin to move away from egocentric perspective (the belief that the world and everything therein centers around them), they begin to develop a theory of mind. This allows them to understand other’s perspective, thoughts, and feelings. However, a theory of mind appears to be lacking in those on the Autism Spectrum. What does this mean for them and what cognitive theories can be applied to this deficit in both child and those on the Autism spectrum.
For Piaget, the perspective a child held was a central concept of his developmental theory. The early, developing child olds a perspective that he is the central figure and is unable to understand other people have differing beliefs than his own, a process Piaget referred to as decentering. Piaget asserted his begins to change as the child enters the Concrete Operational Stage, where they are able to assume
Those with an Autism Spectrum Disorder diagnosis are unable to anticipate or understand other’s thoughts, responses, and actions. Thus, this deficit greatly impacts their ability to initiate and maintain social relationships. For instance, if you are to approach a someone on the high functioning end of the Autism spectrum and speak to him, you would note there is no usage or understanding of metaphor. A common salutation is, “hey, what’s up?” and the response to you would be “the ceiling.” This very literal interpretation harkens back to the Mutual Exclusivity theory Perner et al discussed, which states for children who have yet to develop a theory of mind, each object or thought has a specific meaning and description, there are no subtleties or nuances to them. This is exemplified in the false belief task, where the object is placed into the box and the child witnesses this, so therefore the absent doll must know it too, according to the perspective of the