Week 5 Review: Cognitive Structural Theories

Introduction

• This week's focus is on reviewing cognitive structural theories, which describe epistemological and intellectual development during college years.
• Keywords: Epistemology and Epistemological
  • Epistemology: Theory of knowledge; distinguishing justified belief from opinion.
  • Epistemological development: Increasing complexity in knowing and making judgments.
• Cognitive development involves thinking, reasoning, and making sense of the world.

Cognitive Structural Theories

• Explain how individuals think about knowing and make meaning of their experiences.
• Concerned with intellectual activity and cognitive development.

Piaget's Theory of Cognitive Development

• Genetic Epistemology: Four stages of development
  1. Sensory Motor Stage (Birth to 2 years): Development through senses and motor abilities.
  2. Pre-operational Stage (2 to 7 years): Limited logical thinking, egocentrism, and use of symbols.
  3. Concrete Operational Stage (7 to 11 years): Logical manipulation of symbols; operational thinking.
  4. Formal Operational Stage (11 to 16 years): Systematic, rational thought, and abstract thinking.

Perry's Theory of Cognitive Development

• Development occurs in movement between positions; summarized into four stages:
  1. Dualism: Absolute truths; black and white perspectives.
  2. Multiplicity: All opinions are equal; distrust of authority.
  3. Relativism: Some opinions carry more weight; critical reflection.
  4. Commitment in Relativism: Ethical growth and making informed choices.

Belenky, Clinchy, Goldberger, and Tarule's Women's Ways of Knowing

• Investigated cognitive development specific to women.
• Five Perspectives:
  1. Silence: Lack of personal voice.
  2. Received Knowing: Information received from authority; black and white truth.
  3. Subjective Knowing: Knowledge centered in self; reliance on personal experience.
  4. Procedural Knowing: Valuing authority and shared knowledge; separate and connected knowing.
  5. Constructed Knowing: Integration of personal and external knowledge.

King and Kitchener's Reflective Judgment Model

• Three Levels of Thinking:
  1. Pre-reflective Thinking: Knowledge is certain, authority-based.
  2. Quasi-reflective Thinking: Recognition of uncertainty; contextual knowledge.
  3. Reflective Thinking: Justification of beliefs through evidence comparison.
• Importance of ill-structured problems for cognitive growth.

Baxter-Magolda's Epistemological Reflections

• Stages of Knowing:
  1. Absolute Knowing: Knowledge is certain; authority-driven.
  2. Transitional Knowing: Knowledge is both certain and uncertain.
  3. Independent Knowing: Peers and self as knowledge creators.
  4. Contextual Knowing: Critical analysis of new ideas.

Indigenous Ways of Knowing

• Challenges Western theories; emphasizes communal discovery and shared values.
• Encourages reimagining cognitive structural theories through a communal lens.

Conclusion

• Discussion on reimagining cognition through communal values and understanding ill-structured problems.
• Reflection on the integration of different ways of knowing and preparing for class discussions on Thursday.