Social relations, social influence and the development of knowledge

Resumen

The notion of socialization in developmental psychology is one not often associated with the work of Piaget. Yet in spite of an undoubted emphasis on the mechanisms of epistemic construction, there are important sections of Piaget's work (notably Piaget 1932; 1964) where he elaborates a role for social processes in cognitive development. This paper explores the significance of Piaget's distinction between relations of constraint and cooperation. It examines how authority influence provides a connection between the individual child's development and the social-organizational structures within society which might obstruct the child’s involvement in the social construction of knowledge. A corollary focus upon representations and knowledge in social psychology illustrates points of convergence between developmental and social psychological approaches to cognitive change.