The Introduction And Development Of Piaget’s Psychological Theory In China

Jean Piaget(1896—1980)is a world-renowned Swiss child psychologist,whose initial work in the 1920s spurred lines of research that still resound today.In 1930,Chinese scholars began to translate his theories and validate them experimentally,and it has been nearly a century since his theories were introduced to China.This study attempts to uncover the people and events that played a key role in the development process of Piaget’s psychological theory in China,and then delineate its developmental stages and characteristics,and finally draw a conclusion about Piaget’s influence and contribution in China.This study can complement the research on the history of psychology of Piaget and provide historical references for further research and application of his theory.The study mainly adopts the method of documentary research and comparative analysis.Based on modern and contemporary journals,books,and newspapers,it did research on the dynamic development process of Piagetian theory in China from theoretical translation and experimental verification.After making a comparison and analysis of representative translated works and experiments in the specific historical period,the thesis summarized its characteristics,which provided a foundation for the subsequent division of developmental stages.It is found that the translation of Piagetian theory has become more and more systematic over time,going through three processes from 1930 to the present:selected translation,complete translation,and compiled translation.Gao Juefu,Wu Fuyuan,Li Qiwei,and other scholars successively translated and compiled works such as The Language of the Child,Child Psychology,and Collected Works of Jean Piaget,greatly promoting the translation and introduction of Piagetian theory.In terms of experimental verification,Huang Yi,Zuo Renxia,Liu Fan,Lu Jing,Zhang Meiling,Liu Jinghe,Wang Xianqing,Li Boshu,and others conducted a large amount of empirical research on causal thinking,number concepts,and moral judgment,especially concentrated in the 1980s and 1990s.Overall,the introduction and development of Piaget’s psychological theory in China could be divided into four stages:a budding stage(1930—1948),an exploratory stage(1949—1977),a flourishing stage(1978—1999),and an improving stage(2000—present).Under the influence of Piaget’s theory,psychological research in China has been continuously deepened.In the aspect of empirical research,Chinese scholars have improved and innovated research questions,subject selection,experimental methods,and materials.On the basis of empirical research,Chinese scholars have applied Piaget’s theory to promote educational reform,such as Liu Jinghe and Li Boshu,who compiled teaching materials and books in an effort to apply them to mathematics teaching and moral education.Piaget’s psychological theory has contributed to great progress in Chinese developmental psychology in terms of research content,research methods,and so on.