This paper summarizes a project to determine the helpfulness of constructive/developmental theory in studying effective leadership. Grounded in social science research conducted by Piaget, Kohlberg, Perry, and others, the constructive/developmental leadership model has four stages. In the imperial stage, the individual's frames of reference are…

A study was conducted to categorize the questions found in the reading skills development books used in Maryland's community colleges according to Bloom's Taxonomy of Educational Objectives. The study sought to determine the number of questions per taxonomy category; whether there was a significant difference between observed and expected…

The primary aims of this paper are to (1) clarify what is meant by an action theory perspective on the study of human development, and (2) report a series of developmental studies focusing on social cognition. In particular, it is pointed out that theories, methodologies, and empirical strategies realize an action theory perspective if human…

Reported are research findings that (1) illustrate the importance of primary spatial orientation for children's and adults' use of symbolic spatial skills and (2) indicate the importance of the distinction between primary and secondary spatial orientation. At least two major ways exist in which humans gather and use spatial information. The…

Provides a framework for understanding the value of water play for preschoolers and offers suggestions (materials and activities) for incorporating it into a program. (Author/ED)

This study investigated the development of perceptual, cognitive, and affective perspective taking in 167 kindergarten through sixth grade children. Task intercorrelations were low, nonsignificant, and inconsistent, supporting the view that perspective taking is a multidimensional social-cognitive construct. (JMB)

Reports two experiments which were designed to establish whether errors in infants' manual searches for objects are caused by changes in the location of an object or by the change in the relation between old and new hiding places. (JMB)

Second grade children were pretested for the ability to conserve, after which conservers were paired with nonconservers. Pairs were then instructed to resolve their opposing answers on the conservation tasks. (JMB)

Teachers should provide more real experiences for children rather than vicarious ones, in order to allow children's cognitive structuring processes to develop.

The role of linguistics and its importance in the areas of cognitive development, psychology and semantics is discussed. (DEP)

Suggests that students who reason with only concrete thinking patterns may become formal thinkers through the use of the following instructional pattern: (1) the introduction of an undifferentiated whole, (2) differentiation of the whole through concrete experiences, (3) invention of symbolic notation, (4) application of concepts which lead to…

The author identifies two operations, "dump" and "play", that take place in human communication and analyzes the communication efforts of young children (prior to age 8) in terms of the limitations in cognitive development that govern their communication. (Author/LS)

Individuals may be able to exert considerable control over their perceptual experience and environmental awareness by deliberately varying their "cognitive sets" - plans for selecting and processing information. This theme is explored and a research project, which included eleven experiments, on the effects of cognitive sets is reported. (BT)