Genetic epistemology, also called the developmental theory of knowledge, is Jean Piaget's study of the origins of knowledge, built by applying a genetic, developmental method to epistemology itself rather than treating knowledge as fixed and given. It opposes traditional epistemology by uniting constructivism and structuralism, arguing that a child's knowledge is generated through the child's own interaction with the environment rather than supplied ready-made by innate structure or passive observation. It is the broader theoretical framework from which Piaget's specific stage-by-stage account of children's cognitive development was drawn.
Facts
Core ClaimKnowledge is not a fixed body of facts but a developmental process: children construct knowledge in stages by acting on and adapting to their environment, so what is known cannot be separated from how it was acquired. 1 Connections
Developed By
Jean Piaget, Thinkers Genetic epistemology is Jean Piaget's own study of the origins of knowledge, per its own entity-description on this atlas.
Sources
1. Wikipedia: Genetic Epistemology
Wikimedia FoundationGenetic epistemology, opening paragraphQuote, Genetic epistemology, opening paragraph
This theory opposes traditional epistemology and unites constructivism and structuralism. Piaget took epistemology as the starting point and adopted the method of genetics, arguing that all knowledge of the child is generated through interaction with the environment.
2. Jean Piaget (Wikipedia)
Wikimedia FoundationCareer sectionQuote, Career section
Piaget created the International Center for Genetic Epistemology in Geneva in 1955 while on the faculty of the University of Geneva, and directed the center until his death in 1980.
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