Running Head: PERSONAL PARADIGM 1

Personal Paradigm

Katherine Orchard

Brigham Young University-Idaho

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Personal Paradigm

Child development and sociology are two passions in my life. There are many theories

from both child development and sociology that have shaped my beliefs in how to best advocate

for children and families. As I have pursued my bachelor’s in child development and a minor in

sociology, there have been theories presented throughout the last few years that I have found to

be beneficial in my own life. From my sociology courses, the Sociological Imagination has been

a theory I have reflected on many times. From my child development courses, Vygotsky’s zone

of proximal development, Piaget’s stages of development, and Bowlby’s attachment theory have

shaped the way I think, feel, and act toward advocating for children and families. Applying these

principles and concepts in my own life have helped me to understand how to best advocate for

the people I will be working with for the rest of my life.

The Sociological Imagination has been a theory that has been a foundation for my time at

Brigham Young University-Idaho. After taking multiple sociology classes, this idea of looking

beyond ourselves has been a helpful concept. Sociologist and activist, C. Wright Mills argued

that “micro and macro levels of analysis can be linked together by what he termed the

sociological imagination. Because of the sociological imagination, Mills argued, the individual is

able to understand greater historical events in terms of the private and public lives of a variety of

individuals… Individual experiences and societal relationships must be connected” (Stalker,

2019). This is the idea that our individual experiences affect society and that society affects our

individual experiences as well. This concept can be used in helping children and family because

it helps us to look at how important society is and how important helping children and family as

a whole should be.

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Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development is about the cognitive development of the

child. This has been an important concept throughout my college career as I have learned about

children and how much they can process and handle. Vygotsky defined the zone of proximal

development as “the distance between the actual developmental level as determined by

independent problem solving and the level of potential development as determined through

problem solving under adult guidance or in collaboration with more knowledgeable others"

(Doolittle, 1995). This zone of development is what the child can do on his own without the help

of others, but it would also be challenging for that individual. The zone of proximal development

can be understood through play and through the interaction of others. Children challenge

themselves as they play and interact with others, but they stay within their zone of proximal

development.

Vygotsky proposed that “a child's immediate potential for cognitive growth is bounded

on the lower end by that which the child can accomplish on their own and on the upper end by

that which the child can accomplish with the help of a more knowledgeable other, such as a peer,

tutor, or teacher. This region of immediate potential for cognitive growth is the zone of proximal

development” (Doolittle, 1995). As a teacher, mother, or even just as a friend, it is important to

remember this concept. We should know what activities would be best suited for the children we

teach. We also need to keep this concept in mind in order to know when to step back and let the

child figure out the activity on his own.

Another theory that has impacted my beliefs on how to help children and families is the

theory presented by Jean Piaget. He came up with four stages of development: sensorimotor (age

0 to 2 years), preoperational (age 2 to 7 years), concrete operational (age 7 to 12 years), and

formal operational (age 12 to adulthood) (Clouse, 2019). When we understand the stages of
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development, we understand the best ways to help children and families. The development of the

child can best be helped and influenced when we know that the child is capable of and can

handle during each stage of development. The stages of development presented by Piaget are

simple and to the point and can easily be applied in order to help children and families.

John Bowlby’s theory of attachment is the last theory that has benefited my time as a

child development major because it has also expressed the importance of the first few years of a

child’s life. The attachment theory is defined as “the quality of the bond between child and

caregiver, especially in the first two years of life” and that it “establishes an emotional template

for the way the child will respond to all close interpersonal relationships later in life” (Horowitz,

2018). Knowing this and the importance of attachment early in life helps us to express this

importance to new parents. We would be able to teach and emphasize the value of quality time

between a caregiver and child. This attachment impacts relationships later in life because “a

secure attachment early in life allows a child to develop healthy relationships later in life, while

an insecure or dysfunctional attachment conditions a child to respond to later relationships in

specific dysfunctional ways” (Horowitz, 2018).

As advocates for children and families, it is our responsibility to learn and apply each of

theories into our own lives in order to help the lives of others. As I have studied concepts and

theories from both child development and sociology, I have found the importance of a few

theories and I have seen how they shape my own life and beliefs. The sociological imagination,

Vygotsky’s zone of proximal development, Piaget’s stages of development, and Bowlby’s

attachment theory have all increased my desire to better advocate for children and families.

Knowing how society and individual experiences impact the development of a child has given

me the desire to learn how to best help these individuals and families.
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References

Clouse, B. (2019). Jean Piaget. Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. Retrieved from

https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=88801807&site=eds-

live&scope=site

Doolittle, Peter E. (1995). Understanding Cooperative Learning through Vygotsky's Zone of

Proximal Development. Lilly National Conference on Excellence in College Teaching.

Horowitz, D. (2018). John Bowlby. Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. Retrieved from

https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=113931059&site=eds-

live&scope=site

Stalker, I. (2019). C. Wright Mills. Salem Press Biographical Encyclopedia. Retrieved from

https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ers&AN=89407278&site=eds-

live&scope=site.