According to Jean Piaget , at which stage of cognitive development does the child understand that symbols can be used to represent objects - 'bicycle' will generate an image even when absent?

According to Jean Piaget , at which stage of cognitive development does the child understand that symbols can be used to represent objects - 'bicycle' will generate an image even when absent? Correct Answer Pre-operational Stage

Piaget’s stage theory describes the cognitive development in children.

• Cognitive development involves changes in cognitive processes and abilities. In Piaget’s view, early cognitive development involves processes based upon actions and later progresses into changes in mental operations

Key Points

• 'Preoperational period' lasts around 2 to 6 or 7 years of age.
• In this stage, the child assumes that other people feel, see, and hear exactly the same as the child does.
• It refers to the child's inability to infer the perspective of other people or to see a situation from other's points of view.
• The child has mental representations and are also able to understand things symbolically (playing house, having a tea party).
• The child during this stage engages in what is called a symbolic play that is, the wooden box is considered as a car, a rounding, the steering wheel and the stick, a gun. That is during play an object takes the place of or represents something else in the child’s mind.
• Piaget noted that children are unable to take the point of view of other people, which he termed egocentrism. Egocentrism is when children experience difficulty in experiencing another person’s perspectives.

Thus, it infers that according to Jean Piaget, at the Pre-operational Stage of cognitive development the child understand that symbols can be used to represent objects - 'bicycle' will generate an image even when absent.

Additional Information 

• Stage I: Sensory-motor stage: The first stage is the sensory-motor stage which lasts from birth to about two years old. The infant uses his or her senses and motor abilities to understand the world, beginning with reflexes and ending with complex combinations of sensory-motor skills.
• Stage III- Concrete operations stage: The concrete operational stage begins around age seven and continues until approximately age twelve. During this time, children gain a better understanding of mental operations. They begin thinking logically about concrete events but have difficulty understanding abstract or hypothetical concepts.
• Stage IV- Formal operational stage: The formal operational stage begins at approximately age twelve and lasts into adulthood. During this time, people develop the ability to think about abstract concepts, deductive reasoning, and systematic planning.