Cognitive and Artistic Development

From the moment when one is born until he or she dies, one passes through a process of growth. People develop physically, mentally, artistically, etcetera. Each area of development has been closely studied by researchers, since all of them have a great influence on the process of maturation in each person's life. Furthermore, many psychologists have shown an interest in the way in which mental and the physical growth are affect or depend on each other. Lately, scientists have focused also on artistic development, and its impact on people's lives. After studying stages of development in both the cognitive process and the artistic process that have been identified, It has been discovered that there might be a connection between the two of them. How then, are these developmental stages interrelated?

Cognitive development

One of the areas of research in psychology is cognitive development. Cognitive processes focus on mental functions such as perception, comprehension, intelligence, learning, memory, attention, action, problem solving, imagination, etc. Cognitive psychologists are interested in the way in which the information that is received by our senses are processed by the brain and how this process affects us and our actions. Researchers have demonstrated that the cognitive development is a complex process which begins during infancy and continues through several stages. That is why psychologists have shown a real interest in this field, and most of them have based their studies on child development.

One of the first to study cognition on children was J. M. Baldwin (1896) who observed that first children learn to distinguish one person from another and persons from objects, then to distinguish themselves from others. This process is accomplished through imitation and socialization. On the other hand, G.H. Mead (1934/ 1974) explained cognitive development by using symbolic communication. He suggests that the person who sends out a message is anticipating the answer by putting him or herself in the place of the receiver. Furthermore, one of the most famous psychologists that studies cognitive development is Piaget (1932/1965) who agreed with Baldwin's principles, but argued that children (two to seven) are dominated by egocentrism. Therefore they are able to understand the difference between themselves and others but lack the understanding of particular differences, especially in perspective (Mussen 1983).

Piaget, based on the belief that cognitive development is given by maturational changes in mental functions and social environments, creates, in Epistemologie genetique (1970), a hierarchical developmental stage. He identified 4 major levels of age, but the timing of the stages can vary from person to person. The sensorimotor level is characteristic to a group age from zero to two years (infancy). Children at this stage lack coordination, object permanence, and they cannot distinguish themselves form the environment, but they develop symbolic functions which helps the infant to adapt to the reality. The second stage is the pre-operational stage (two to seven years) which is distinguished by egocentrism, animism and artificialism, lack of conservation, and "deferent imitation" (Piaget 1970). Moreover, the next stage identified by Piaget is the concrete-operational period (seven to eleven years) and in this phase the children are able to reproduce in their heads the action that was done by their hands. During this stage, decentration, reversibility, lack of rule generalization, as well as, conservation, concept of time and space, are the main characteristics. The formal operations takes place form 11 to 15 years, and the adolescents are characterized by abstract reasoning, idealism, and the concept of values and beliefs are introduced in his or her vocabulary.

On the other hand, Vygotsky, who has shown a particular interest in mental functioning, has developed three new theories: the "zone of proximal development" "egocentric" and "inner speech" (Vygotzky 1978, 1987), related to child development. The zone of proximal development correspond to the child's cognitive determined by "independent problem solving" and "problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more capable peers" (Vygotsky 1978). The researcher claims that guidance and help from outside is essential for child's mental growth. Furthermore, the inner speech, which originates in positive social contacts, allows people to plan and coordinate their actions.

Artistic development

"Creativity is the process of individual experience which enhances the self. It is an expression of one's uniqueness. To be creative then is to be oneself." (Michael F. Andrews). The artistic process is a fundamental human activity through which every person expresses his or her thoughts and emotions. Therefore, if cognitive development studies the way humans think and process information, artistic development expounds the way one thinks, feels or sees everything. Many psychologists support the idea of artistic practice in children's education because it will develop awareness, focusing, conceptual thought, etc.

Earl. W. Linderman and Donald W. Herberholz have identified 4 stages in children's artistic development. The fist stage is the Scribbling stage of art development (two to four), in which the children make undistinguished marks on paper or wall. Kenneth M. Lansing considers that youngsters in this period "lack of a mental image that they can retain" and this "prevents them from drawing and from thinking intelligently."

(Lansing, 1996). After practicing a while the child will start telling stories about his or her drawings and at the end he will be able to name his drawings. Therefore he will have a concrete image of the objects which means that he has "intuitive thought" as Piaget said, and consequently he achieved the "concrete operational stage." (Linderman) The next stage is the symbol stage of art development (four to eight) during which the children will make simple representations of figures. Usually, these drawings are not realistic, but through practice they will show a greater control over their art skills, and more details. Third is the beginning realism stage of art development (eight to twelve) which "is the last outpost for childish pictures" (Linderman). The drawings during this phase are more realistic, the figures are more proportionate, with more details (for example, the difference between genders is shown by illustrations of pants or skirts).

Cognitive