Post by Ryan: Developmental Theories and Perspective

I’m sure many of us have gotten into an argument that sounded something like this:

“I know.”

     “You know?  How you know you know?”

“Well I just know.”

     “Well I don’t know that you know, ya know?”

“So you want to know how I know that I know what I know?”

Well the study of how we know what we know is epistemology – and it was the attempt to answer this question (how do we know what we know) that led John Locke (29 Aug 1632 – 28 Oct 1704) to do some thinking… and has happens when we think a lot, he got some ideas.

His theory of the Tabula Rasa would be essential for many people that have done some thinking since his time and rationalized that NURTURE is extremely important to how children develop and how we come to KNOW things.  This was very controversial at the time since it was believed that children were born with certain innate understandings, and it also led many parents to really spend some time thinking about how they were treating and influencing their children.

In today’s modern world we’ve learned that genetics and biological influences are also extremely powerful.

Jean Piaget (9 Aug 1896 – 16 Sept 1980) was one theorist who took this viewpoint.  He said that our environment doesn't influence us, but that humans develop according to genetically determined stages.  His is certainly a NATURE theory.

... or for some, this might sum it up better...

So who's "right?"

I think that the best theory relating to parenting, like most things in parenting, is kind of a mash up of everything that you've got.  You can't discount either side, so you have to accept both and adapt your style of parenting to factor in each perspective.

From the perspective of Piaget, EDUCATION is key.  He said, "only education is capable of saving our societies from possible collapse, whether violent, or gradual."  Education and teaching our children allows them to move through the normal phases of child development, working through challenges and mastering concepts as they go.

If we understand the role that genetics plays in our children's development, we can be prepared to alter our teaching style or adapt our parenting methods so that each child is getting from us what they really need.

This focus on our children really compliment's Locke's perspective on development.  Parent's are their child's guide and mentor, leading them through the challenges of life.  I think that children respond (especially as adults when they can look through their memories with the power of hindsight) and appreciate a parent who can say that they really tried hard to do what was best for them.

There are many other theories to how children develop... if you're interested, here's a Reader's Digest summary of a  few others:

Vygotski - Zone of Proximal Development

Vygotski & Piaget in 90 seconds

Erickson - Psychology and stage outcomes

Parenting ideas have changed a lot over the centuries...

The perspective given to us by modern day prophets helps us to take the good from the various theories and apply them to parenting.  The 13th Article of Faith states:

If there is anything ^hvirtuous,ⁱlovely, or of good report or praiseworthy, we seek after these things.


All these theories have something that discerning parents can learn from and apply to how they interact with their children.

Every Parent Is a Teacher

"Should a parent need added inspiration to commence his God-given teaching task, let him remember that the most powerful combination of emotions in the world is not called out by any grand cosmic event nor found in novels or history books—but merely by a parent gazing down upon a sleeping child."

Thomas S. Monson, "Only a Teacher: A Personal Observation," Ensign, May 1973, 27

Parents Should Be Examples of Christlike Attributes

"Each mother and father should lay aside selfish interests and avoid any thought of hypocrisy, physical force, or evil speaking. Parents soon learn that each child has an inborn yearning to be free. Each individual wants to make his or her own way. No one wants to be restrained, even by a well-intentioned parent. But all of us can cling to the Lord."

Russell M. Nelson, "Set in Order Thy House," Ensign, Nov. 2001, 70

Further Reading (in a new window, and in a nutshell) :

Attachment Theory

Blank Slate Theory

Erikson's Stages of Psychosocial Development
Theories of Childhood: An Introduction to Dewey, Montessori, Erikson, Piaget & Vygotsky