I believe that if adults, or any person for that matter, were to simplify his or her mind to a child-like point of view, any challenging or troubling situation could be solved with little or no issues. And I'm not the only one with this proposal.
Jean Piaget is one of the foremost psychological experts in recent history. He is known most for his intricate studies with children and finding that children are not illogical and unknowing, but are simply developing and learning in ways that adults should respect.
Time magazine reports that "for 50 years, Piaget, now 73, has been discovering through deceptively simple experiments that children actually have surprisingly intricate thinking skills that adults should learn to appreciate and understand better than they do."
There are some things that allow children to think and learn easier (and quicker) than adults. Piaget, through his experiments, believes that visualization is a major factor. "Quite possibly...adolescents' fascination with their ability to visualize alternatives is what makes them so eager to test new life-styles and Utopian ideals."
There is yet another attribute that children posses the Piaget observed. In the article How a Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues, Don Alexander mentions that "Piaget believed that heteronymous morality is the first stage of moral development. He said 'Justice and rules are conceived as unchangeable properties of the world.'" Children are born and bred to follow directions, to follow the rules. It is psychologically imprinted on their minds until they learn to rebel. As we grow, that urge to "break the rules" grows also. Yes, a little wandering off the beaten track is not a bad thing, but respect for the rules is something we need to keep.
Child-like fascination can never truly be recreated. As adults, the magic of a discovery every day is lost. However, in a more scientific view, if we learned from that fascination and fueled it into our own learning processes, perhaps our discoveries (personal and universal) will be greater and more frequent.
"Jean Piaget: Mapping the Growing Mind." Time. Dec. 1969. 1-4. Time Inc. 3 Nov. 2009. http://www.time.com/time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,840485-1,00.html
Alexander, Don. "How a Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues." How a Child Thinks REgarding Moral Issues. 10 Aug. 2007. EzineArticles.com. 3 Nov. 2009.
http://ezinearticles.com/?id=682443
Jean Piaget is one of the foremost psychological experts in recent history. He is known most for his intricate studies with children and finding that children are not illogical and unknowing, but are simply developing and learning in ways that adults should respect.
Time magazine reports that "for 50 years, Piaget, now 73, has been discovering through deceptively simple experiments that children actually have surprisingly intricate thinking skills that adults should learn to appreciate and understand better than they do."
There are some things that allow children to think and learn easier (and quicker) than adults. Piaget, through his experiments, believes that visualization is a major factor. "Quite possibly...adolescents' fascination with their ability to visualize alternatives is what makes them so eager to test new life-styles and Utopian ideals."
There is yet another attribute that children posses the Piaget observed. In the article How a Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues, Don Alexander mentions that "Piaget believed that heteronymous morality is the first stage of moral development. He said 'Justice and rules are conceived as unchangeable properties of the world.'" Children are born and bred to follow directions, to follow the rules. It is psychologically imprinted on their minds until they learn to rebel. As we grow, that urge to "break the rules" grows also. Yes, a little wandering off the beaten track is not a bad thing, but respect for the rules is something we need to keep.
Child-like fascination can never truly be recreated. As adults, the magic of a discovery every day is lost. However, in a more scientific view, if we learned from that fascination and fueled it into our own learning processes, perhaps our discoveries (personal and universal) will be greater and more frequent.
"Jean Piaget: Mapping the Growing Mind." Time. Dec. 1969. 1-4. Time Inc. 3 Nov. 2009. http://www.time.com/time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,840485-1,00.html
Alexander, Don. "How a Child Thinks Regarding Moral Issues." How a Child Thinks REgarding Moral Issues. 10 Aug. 2007. EzineArticles.com. 3 Nov. 2009.
http://ezinearticles.com/?id=682443
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